NAPOLEON 

LOVER  AND  HUSBAND 

BY 

Frederic  Masson 

TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  FRENCH  BY 
J.  M.  HOWELL 

-  .*        .        • 

1907 
THE  SAALFIELD    PUBLISHING    COMPANY 

NEW   YORK                       AKRON,    OHIO                            CHICAGO 

Copyright  1894 

BY 

THE  MERRIAM  COMPANY 


Copyright  1800 

BY 

THE  WERNER  COMPANY 

Napoleon 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  *AGB 

I.  Youth.  rrfT. 5 

II.  Thoughts  of  Marriage,  tttt. 19 

III.  Josephine  de  Beauharnais.  .i-n-v 82 

IV.  Citizeness  Bonaparte.  ."777. 45 

V.  Madame  Foures 61 

VI.  Reconciliation.. rrr 74 

^VII.  La  Grassini. . . . 87 

VIII.  Footlight  Beauties 101 

IX.  Readers 116 

\/"    X.  Josephine's  Coronation,  rr. 131 

XI.  Madame  *  *  *  *  144 

XII.  Stephanie  de  Beauharnais 157 

XIII.  Eleonore 171 

XIV.  Hortense 181 

^  XV.  Madame  Wale  wska.  rT. 192 

^  XVI.  The  Divorce,  .rr ,-.'. .... 237 

C/  XVII.  Marie-Louise,  .rr. 252 

XVIII.  Elba 280 

XIX.  The  Hundred  Days 298 

XX.  Summary 310 


<H  on 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  I. 

YOUTH. 


"  Pabis,  Thursday,  22d,  1787, 
"  Hotel  de  Cherbourg,  " 
**  Rue  du  Four-Saint-Honore\ 

u  After  leaving  the  Opera  I  wandered  about  in 
the  garden  of  the  Palais-Eoyal.  Strongly  impressed 
by  the  scenes  which  I  had  just  witnessed,  my  mind 
in  ebullition,  exhilarated  by  the  music,  I  was  at 
first  insensible  of  the  cold  ;  but,  as  the  scenes  which 
I  had  beheld  faded,  I  became  conscious  of  the  wintry 
air  and  turned  to  seek  shelter  under  the  colonnade. 
I  was  upon  the  threshold  of  the  iron  gates  when  my 
glance  fell  upon  a  woman,  and  I  stopped  to  look  at 
her.  The  hour,  her  extreme  youth,  and  general 
appearance  left  no  doubt  as  to  her  social  status,  yet 
she  looked  modest,  and  when  she  stopped  and  con- 
fronted me  it  was  not  boldly  but  in  a  manner  per- 


(V  *  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

fectly  in  accord  with  her  appearance.  Her  diffidence 
encouraged  me  and  I  spoke  to  her ;  I,  who  have 
always  been  so  impressed  with  the  odiousness  of 
such  a  calling  as  hers,  have  always  shunned  such 
women  and  considered  myself  contaminated  by  so 
much  as  a  look  from  one  of  her  class,  now  voluntarily 
addressed  one  ;  but  this  girl's  pale  face,  delicate 
appearance,  and  sweet  voice  effaced  all  my  old  prej- 
udices, and  I  said  to  myself :  '  Here  is  a  person 
whom  it  would  be  wise  to  study,  as  I  desire  to  know 
something  of  this  class  of  women.' 

"'You  look  cold,'  I  said  to  her.  '  How  can  you 
wander  about  on  such  a  chilly  night  ? ' 

"'The  cold  exhilarates  me,  and  then — it  is  my 
life  ;  I  must  seek  acquaintances.' 

"  The  indifferent  and  business-like  tone  of  her  an- 
swer pleased  me,  and  I  walked  on  beside  her.  '  You 
look  delicate,'  I  said.  'I  don't  understand  how  you 
can  endure  such  a  life  as  yours  must  be.' 

"'Dame!  I  must  do  something.  I  know  no  other 
way  of  earning  a  livelihood  and  I  don't  wish  to 
starve  ! ' 

"  '  But  could  you  not  find  some  other  occupation 
— something  less  wearing  physically  ? '  I  asked. 

11 '  Not  now,  it  is  too  late.' 

"I  was  delighted  with  her  frankness,  never  hav- 
ing elicited  such  replies  in  my  previous  experiences. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  7 

'You  must  come  from  the  North,'  I  said,  '  since  you 
do  not  mind  the  cold.' 

"  'Yes,  I  come  from  Nantes,  in  Brittany.' 

"  'I  know  that  part  of  the  country  well.  Made- 
moiselle, I  wish  you  would  tell  me  the  story  of  your 
downfall.' 

"  '  It  was  an  officer,  like  yourself,  who  caused  it.' 

"  '  Do  you  regret  it  ? ' 

'"I  do  indeed  ! '  she  answered,  in  a  voice  whose 
depth  of  feeling  surprised  me.  '  I  assure  you  I  do ; 
my  sister  is  happily  settled,  and  you  cannot  imagine 
how  I  wish  that  I  too  had  a  home.' 

"  '  How  did  you  happen  to  come  to  Paris  ? ' 

"  'I  was  abandoned  by  the  officer  who  seduced  me 
and  obliged  to  flee  from  my  mother's  anger  ;  having 
made  the  acquaintance  of  another  officer  I  accom- 
panied him  to  Paris ;  then,  he  too  left  me,  and  a 
third,  with  whom  I  have  lived  for  three  years,  suc- 
ceeded him  ;  although  a  Frenchman  he  was  called 
by  business  to  London  and  is  still  there,  so  I  am 
obliged  to  shift  for  myself.  Let  us  go  to  your 
rooms.' 

"'Why  should  we  go  there?" 

" '  Don't  be  a  silly !  We  will  warm  ourselves 
and  then — perhaps  you  will  be  glad  to  have  me 
there.' 

"I  was  far  from  scrupulous  and  had  piqued  her 


8  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

only  that  she  should  not  run  away  from  the  sermon 
I  was  mentally  preparing,  and  the  modesty  I  in- 
tended to  parade— before  proving  to  her  that  it  was 
a  virtue  I  did  not  possess." 

At  the  time  when  this  was  written  Bonaparte 
was  aged  eighteen  years  and  three  months,  having 
been  born  on  the  15th  of  August,  1769.  We  have 
the  right  to  suppose  that  this  was  the  first  woman 
with  whom  he  had  any  connection,  and  reviewing 
rapidly  the  history  of  his  youth  we  shall  find  suffi- 
cient reasons  to  confirm  this  opinion.  Napoleon 
himself  made  a  note,  with  dates,  of  such  love-affairs 
as  left  an  impression  upon  his  memory ;  those  which 
I  have  been  able  to  investigate  I  have  found  to  be 
absolutely  correct. 

He  left  Ajaccio  for  France  on  the  15th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1778,  when  he  was  but  nine  and  a  half  years  of 
age.  The  feminine  memories  which  he  carried  with 
him  from  his  island  were  those  of  his  nurse,  Camilla 
Carbone,  who  was  the  widow  Ilari,  and  of  a  little 
schoolmate,  "  La  Giacominetta,"  of  whom  he  often 
spoke  in  the  sad  days  at  Saint  Helena.  Later  in  life 
he  showered  benefits  upon  his  nurse,  her  daughter, 
Mme.  Tavera,  and  her  granddaughter,  Mme.  Poli, 
whom  he  had  himself  christened  Faus'tina ;  he 
was  unable  to  do  anything  for  his  foster-brother, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  9 

Ignatio  Ilari,  because  when  very  young  Ilari  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  English  party  and  enlisted 
in  the  English  navy. 

Of  the  nurses  who  had  charge  of  Napoleon's  in- 
fancy and  childhood  one,  Minana  Saveria,  remained 
until  her  death  with  Mme.  Bonaparte  ;  the  other, 
Mammuccia  Caterina,  died  before  the  Empire  was 
established,  as  did  also  little  Giacominetta,  for  whose 
sake,  when  a  lad,  Bonaparte  had  borne  much  teasing. 

At  the  college  of  Autun,  where  he  was  a  pupil 
from  the  lstfof  January  to  the  12th  of  May,  1779  ; 
at  the  college  of  Brienne,  where  he  was  from  May, 
1779,  to  October  14th,  1784,  at  the  military  school  in 
Paris  where  he  spent  the  year  from  October  22d, 
1784, to  October  30th,  1785,  no  woman  entered  his  life. 
Even  admitting  the  statement  advanced  by  Mme. 
D'Abrantes  that,  contrary  to  the  strict  rules  of  the 
Ecole  Militaire,  Bonaparte,  under  the  pretext  of  a 
sprain,  spent  eight  days  in  the  apartment  of  M. 
Permon,  No.  5  Place  Conti,  I  see  no  reason  to  change 
my  belief,  for  at  that  time  he  was  but  a  stripling  of 
sixteen. 

Napoleon  went  to  Valence  on  the  30th  of  October, 
1785,  and  left  that  place  to  pass  his  vacation  in  Cor- 
sica on  the  16th  of  September,  1786,  after  a  sojourn 
of  less  tnan  a  year  ;  he  did  not  return  from  the 
island  until  the  12th  of  September,  1787,  and  it  was 


10  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

then  that  he  made  his  journey  to  the  capital;  there- 
fore an  adventure,  prior  to  that  of  the  22d  of 
November,  1787,  could  hardly  have  taken  place  be- 
tween his  leaving  the  Ecole  Militaire  and  his  return 
to  Paris. 

He  did  not  engage  in  any  gallantries  while  in  Cor- 
sica, nor  yet  in  Valence ;  indeed,  during  his  sojourn 
in  the  latter  place  he  appeared  to  be  timid,  rather 
melancholy,  absorbed  in  his  studies  and  desirous  only 
of  standing  well  in  his  classes  and  being  well  re- 
ceived socially.  He  had  carried  to  Valence  a  letter 
of  introduction  to  Mgr.  de  Tardivon,  Abbe  de  Saint- 
Ruff,  from  the  Marbeufs,  and  to  this  ecclesiastical 
dignitary,  who,  crossed  and  mitred,  gave  tone  to 
the  town,  he  owed  his  entree  into  the  best  houses  of 
the  city,  to  Mme.  Gregoire  du  Colombier's,  Mme. 
Lauberie  de  Saint  Germain's  and  Mme.  de  Lau- 
rencin's. 

These  ladies,  particularly  the  latter  two,  held  the 
best  positions  in  the  province,  belonged  to  the  lesser 
nobility  and  lived  handsomely.  They  were  preju- 
diced against  the  lives  of  the  officers  whom  they 
admitted  to  their  houses,  and  never  permitted  any 
intimacy  between  their  daughters  and  young  men 
whose  conduct  they  did  not  consider  irreproach- 
able. 

Bonaparte    may   have  entertained  some  vague 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND,  11 

ideas  of  marriage  with  Caroline  du  Colombier,  who 
was  permitted  by  her  mother  rather  more  liberty 
than  other  girls  enjoyed.  He  was  barely  seventeen 
at  that  time,  and  she  was  considerably  his  senior  ;  if 
he  admired  her,  the  attentions  which  he  paid  her 
were  chaste,  deferential  and  boyish  :  a.  la  Eousseau. 
It  was  not  long,  however,  before  Mile,  du  Colombier 
married  an  officer,  M.  Garempel  de  Bressieux,  and 
left  Valence  and  went  to  live  in  an  old  chateau  in 
the  country. 

Nearly  twenty  years  later,  when  Napoleon  was  in 
camp  at  Boulogne,  he  received  a  letter  from  her 
recommending  her  brother  to  his  notice,  and  al- 
though he  had  not  seen  the  object  of  his  boyish  ad- 
miration since  her  marriage,  he  answered  by  return 
of  post,  assuring  her  that  he  would  seize  the  first 
occasion  to  be  useful  to  M.  du  Colombier  and 
saying: 

"  The  memory  of  your  mother  and  yourself  has 
always  been  dear  to  me.  I  see  by  your  letter  that 
you  live  near  Lyons,  and  I  must  reproach  you  for 
not  calling  while  I  was  there,  as  it  would  have  given 
me  great  pleasure  to  have  seen  you." 

This  advice  was  not  lost,  and  when,  on  April  12th, 
1806,  Napoleon  passed  through  Lyons  on  his  way 
to  the  coronation  at  Milan,  Mme.  de  Bressieux  was 
among  the  first  to  request  an  interview.     She  was 


12  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

terribly  changed,  aged,  and  no  longer  the  pretty 
Caroline  of  bygone  days,  nevertheless  she  obtained 
all  she  asked  for  :  the  erasure  of  certain  names  on 
the  list  of  Emigres,  a  position  for  her  husband,  and 
a  lieutenancy  for  her  brother.  On  New  Year's  day 
of  1807  Mine,  de  Bressieux  recalled  herself  to  the 
Emperor's  memory  by  a  letter  asking  for  news  of  his 
health.  Napoleon  responded  promptly,  and  in  1808 
he  made  her  lady-in-waiting  upon  Madame  Mere, 
called  her  husband  to  preside  over  the  electoral 
college  of  Isiere,  and  in  1810  created  him  a  baron  of 
the  Empire. 

Such  was  the  grateful  memory  Napoleon  cherished 
for  all  who  had  been  kind  to  him  in  his  youth ; 
there  were  none  whose  fortunes  he  did  not  assure, 
as  there  were  none  whom  he  forgot  to  mention 
during  his  captivity  ;  women,  if  possible,  received 
the  greater  share  of  his  gratitude,  and  even  when 
he  had  reason  to  feel  some  bitterness  towards  them 
it  was  enough  that  they  should  once  have  shown 
him  kindness.  Thus  Mile,  de  Lauberie  de  Saint- 
Germain,  like  Mile,  du  Colombier,  had  preferred 
another  to  him  and  married  her  cousin,  M.  Bachas- 
son  de  Montalivet ;  but  Napoleon  harbored  no  re- 
sentment, and  it  is  well  known  that  he  made  M. 
de  Montalivet's  fortune,  creating  him  successively 
prefet  de  la  Manche  and  of  Seine-et-Oise,  director 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       18 

general  for  bridges  and  public  roads,  minister  of 
the  Interior  and  count  of  the  Empire  with  an  en- 
dowment of  eighty  thousand  francs.  Mme.  de 
Montalivet,  of  whom  he  once  said,  "  Of  old  I  loved 
both  her  virtues  and  her  beauty,"  he  named  a  lady 
of  the  Empress's  household  in  1806. 

Mme.  de  Montalivet,  however,  did  not  accept  this 
honor  unconditionally,  saying  to  the  Emperor : 
"Your  Majesty  knows  my  belief  regarding  a 
woman's  duty  in  this  world  ;  the  favor  which  you 
have  had  the  goodness  to  accord  me,  and  which 
many  will  envy,  would  seem  to  me  a  misfortune  if 
it  prevented  me  from  attending  my  husband  when 
he  has  the  gout,  or  nursing  my  children  when  Prov- 
idence gives  me  any." 

The  Emperor  at  first  frowned  at  Mme.  de  Monta- 
livet's  frankness,  but  after  a  moment  said  graciously  : 
"  Ah,  madame,  you  wish  to  dictate  terms ;  I  am  un- 
accustomed to  that,  but  on  this  occasion  I  submit. 
Accept  the  position,  and  all  shall  be  so  arranged  that 
your  duties  as  wife  and  mother  shall  not  be  inter- 
fered with." 

Mme.  de  Montalivet 's  position  remained  a  nominal 
one,  but  that  did  not  prevent  Napoleon  from  showing 
her  particular  attention  ;  he  was  fond  of  the  whole 
family  and  said  of  them  :  "  The  family  integrity  is 
indubitable;  it  is  composed  of  lovable  people  and 


14  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

I  believe  firmly  in  the  disinterestedness  of  their 
affection. " 

Such  were  the  recollections  which  Napoleon  had 
of  Valence.  They  were  dear  to  his  heart,  and  of  a 
kind  which  those  young  girls  might  well  be  proud 
of  inspiring.  He  had  no  other  intimacies  that  we 
know  of,  and  in  his  private  journal  no  others  are 
mentioned  ;  like  Hippolite,  he  appears  to  have  been 
more  in  love  with  glory  in  those  days,  than  with 
women  ;  in  confirmation  of  this  witness  this  extract 
from  a  letter  written  at  that  time  : 

"If  I  had  to  compare  the  days  of  Sparta  and 
Rome  with  our  modern  times  I  would  say  here 
reigns  love,  there  reigned  love  of  country.  Judging 
by  the  opposite  effects  which  these  passions  produce 
one  seems  authorized  in  believing  them  incompara- 
ble. One  thing  is  certain:  people  who  abandon  them- 
selves to  gallantry  lose  the  ability  to  even  conceive 
of  the  existence  of  a  patriot,  and  we  have  reached 
that  point  to-day." 

It  is  almost  with  a  sense  of  certitude  that  we  con- 
clude that  the  girl  he  met  in  the  Palais-Royal  was 
his  first  mistress.  The  adventure,  vulgar  though 
it  was,  does  not  the  less  reveal  his  character ;  there 
is  his  misogyny,  his  critical  spirit,  brusque  speech, 
and  the  habit  of  interrogation  which  he  never  re- 
nounced ;  his  good  memory,  also,  is  noticeable  in  his 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND,  15 

account  of  it,  for  he  reproduced  in  striking  fashion 
the  girl's  manner  of  speech,  even  to  the  exclama- 
tion, Dame !  which  proved  her  Breton  origin. 

It  is  doubtful  if  Napoleon  ever  saw  this  girl 
again,  for  although  among  his  papers,  dated  during 
that  sojourn  in  Paris,  there  is  a  dissertation  on 
patriotism  which  is  addressed  to  a  young  lady,  it  is 
hardly  a  topic  upon  which  one  would  write  to  a 
woman  of  her  class. 

After  this  sojourn  in  Paris,  which  lasted  from 
October  to  December  of  1787,  Bonaparte  again  re- 
turned to  Corsica,  where  he  arrived  on  the  1st  of 
January,  1788.  He  spent  six  months  on  the  island, 
rejoining  his  regiment  at  Auxonne  on  the  1st  of 
June  ;  no  trace  of  any  love-affair  at  that  place 
remains  to  us. 

In  the  early  part  of  1789  he  was  sent  to  Seurre 
with  a  detachment,  and  is  accredited  with  holding 

relations  there,   first  with  a    Mme.    L z,    n6e 

N s,  the  wife  of  the  collector  at  the  salt  depot, 

later  with  a  farmer's  wife,  Mme.  G 1,  to  whose 

house  he  went  to  drink  milk,  and,  lastly,  with  the 
daughter  of  the  house  wherein  he  lodged.  This 
seems  crowding  a  good  deal  into  twenty-five  days, 
during  which  time  his  books  are  silent  witnesses 
to  his  assiduous  study  ;  nevertheless,  when,  fourteen 
years  later,  on  the  6th  of  April,  1805,  Napoleon 


16  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

passed  through  Seurre  on  his  way  to  Milan,  it  is 
claimed  that  M.  de  Thiard,  who  was  at  that  time 
his  chamberlain,  introduced  into  his  presence  the 
boarding-house  young  woman,  and  that  he  presented 
her  with  a  scholarship  in  a  government  school  for 
her  son,  a  lad  of  twelve.  The  stated  age  of  this 
child  precludes  the  idea  that  Napoleon  believed  him 
to  be  his  son ;  moreover,  had  the  Emperor  enter- 
tained the  least  doubt  upon  the  subject  he  would 
have  done  far  more  for  the  boy,  and  that  without 
its  being  asked  of  him. 

In  Corsica,  where  he  spent  the  entire  year  of  1790, 
at  Auxonne,  at  Valence,  again  in  Corsica,  then,  in 
the  middle  of  1792,  at  Paris,  there  were  no  love- 
affairs  ;  we  hear  of  none  during  the  first  campaign 
in  the  South  against  the  Federalists,  of  none  at 
Toulon. 

We  must  deliberately  skip  over  a  period  of  four 
years,  during  which  the  young  lieutenant  became  a 
general  of  brigade  and  was  placed  in  command  of 
the  artillery  in  Italy,  where,  in  1794,  the  Convention 
sent  one  of  its  influential  members,  the  Citizen 
Louis  Turreau,  on  a  mission  to  the  army. 

Representative  Turreau  was  accompanied  on  his 
journey  by  his  bride,  who  was  the  daughter  of  a 
surgeon  at  Versailles  and  a  remarkably  pretty 
woman ;  he  arrived  at  Cairo,  in  Piedmont,  where 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  17 

Bonaparte  was  stationed,  on  the  21st  of  September, 
and,  finding  the  young  officer  congenial,  cultivated 
his  acquaintance ;  while  Mme.  Turreau  and  the 
artillery-man  soon  arrived  at  an  understanding, 
Bonaparte's  intimacy  with  Mme.  Turreau  never 
assumed  the  proportions  of  a  liaison,  for  she  was 
too  fickle  to  remain  long  constant,  and,  evidently,  it 
never  aroused  the  husband's  jealousy,  for  he  retained 
a  high  opinion  of  the  young  officer's  ability,  and 
when  the  Convention  was  in  danger  it  was  he,  as 
well  as  Barras,  who  urged  confiding  the  command 
of  the  troops  to  Bonaparte  and,  with  the  Corsican 
deputies,  became  his  surety.. 

Bonaparte  did  not  forget  this  service,  and  when 
placed  in  command  of  the  army  in  Italy  he  took 
Turreau,  who  had  not  been  re-elected,  with  him  as 
commissary-general.  Mme.  Turreau  again  ac- 
companied her  husband,  and,  in  default  of  the  gen- 
eral-in-chief,  made  the  best  of  such  lovers  as  courted 
her  ;  her  conduct  gave  rise  to  continual  scenes  of 
jealousy,  and  Turreau,  so  it  is  said,  died  of  a  broken 
heart.  The  widow  returned  to  Versailles,  and  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Empire  was  dragging  out  a  dreary 
existence  there,  when,  one  day,  the  Emperor  chanced 
to  mention  her  before  Berthier,  who  was  also  a 
native  of  the  town.     The  general  had  known  Mme. 

Turreau  from  childhood,  but  for  years  had  carefully 
2 


18  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

shunned  her  ;  however,  when  he  saw  that  the  Em- 
peror took  an  interest  in  his  old  schoolfellow,  he  re- 
newed the  acquaintanceship  and  espoused  her  cause, 
while  Napoleon,  never  forgetful  of  a  kindness,  made 
haste  to  extricate  madame  from  her  financial  em- 
barrassment, granted  all  her  requests  and  assured 
for  her  the  realization  of  her  rosiest  dreams. 

With  the  exception  of  Mme.  Turreau,  who  threw 
herself  at  his  head,  women  paid  but  scant  attention 
to  the  little,  pale,  thin  officer  who  was  always  badly 
dressed  and  regardless  of  his  appearance,  and  Napo- 
leon's early  loves  resolved  themselves  into  trivial 
flirtations  or  vulgar  adventures.  He  himself 
thought  but  little  about  women,  being  absorbed 
by  his  ambitious  projects,  and  there  was  another, 
and  valid  reason  for  his  chastity,  he  was  poor.  Pov- 
erty, however,  did  for  him  what  it  has  done  for 
many  another  man — forced  him  to  consider  matri- 
mony that  he  might  be  the  sole  recipient  of  a 
woman's  caresses. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAJNO.       19 


CHAPTEE  n. 

THOUGHTS  OF  MARRIAGE. 

While  at  Marseilles  Napoleon  played  at  love  with 
Mme.  Joseph  Bonaparte's  sister,  Desiree-Eugenie 
Clary,  then  a  pretty  girl  of  sixteen  ;  she  believed  his 
attentions  to  be  serious.  Her  girlishness  vanished 
and  she  developed  a  woman's  affection  for  him. 
Sixty-five  years  later  the  rough  drafts  of  her  letters  to 
Napoleon  were  found  among  her  effects  ;  they  were 
all  signed  "Eugenie,"  for  after  the  fashion  of  the 
time  the  young  girl,  whom  her  family  called  Desiree, 
had  wished  to  be  called  by  her  lover  by  a  name  not 
used  by  others  ;  these  letters,  which  are  the  spon- 
taneous outpouring  of  a  pure  affection,  breathe  the 
spirit  of  the  period  following  upon  the  Eeign  of  Ter- 
ror, when  women  made  love  a  religion  ;  indeed,  it 
was  the  only  religion  which  existed  on  the  ruins  of 
society. 

"  Oh,  my  friend,"  Mile.  Clary  wrote  in  one  of  her 
letters,  "take  care  of  yourself  for  my  sake,  fori 
could  not  live  without  you  ;  guard  as  sacredly  as  I 


20  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

shall  the  promise  which  binds  us,  for  were  it  broken 
I  should  die." 

Napoleon's  acquaintance  with  Mile.  Clary  dated 
from  January  or  February,  1795,  and  the  engage- 
ment, if  there  was  a  formal  one,  must  have  taken 
place  on  the  21st  of  April,  when  Bonaparte  passed 
through  Marseilles  on  his  way  to  Paris.  There  was 
no  opposition  to  the  marriage  from  the  Clary  family, 
for  Joseph  and  his  wife  had  long  desired  it,  and 
Desiree's  father,  who  is  reported  to  have  said  "that 
one  Bonaparte  in  the  family  was  quite  enough  for 
him,"  had  died  on  the  20th  of  January,  1794,  and  the 
remaining  members  of  the  family,  Mme.  Clary  and 
her  son,  readily  yielded  to  the  young  girl's  wishes  ; 
her  youth  was  no  obstacle  to  the  marriage,  for  at 
that  time  girls  were  usually  wed  in  their  eighteenth 
year,  and  the  First  Civil  Code  had  just  fixed  the 
thirteenth  year  as  the  legal  age  for  a  female  to 
marry.  Desiree  Clary  afterwards  claimed,  and  offi- 
cially stated,  that  at  this  time  she  was  between 
thirteen  and  fourteen  years  of  age,  but  she  must 
have  been  nearer  seventeen,  as  she  was  born  on  the 
9th  of  November,  1777. 

Bonaparte  arrived  in  Paris  in  May  ;  he  was  out  of 
favor,  out  of  funds,  and  his  only  hope  lay  in  this 
marriage,  failing  in  which  nothing  remained  for  him 
but  to  take  service  in  Turkey,  or,  like  many  others, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  21 

to  speculate  in  national  securities.  Even  when,  by 
degrees,  his  position  improved,  and  he  was  employed 
by  the  Committee  on  Public  Welfare  on  plans  for 
the  campaign,  his  position  was  precarious,  and  realiz- 
ing its  instability,  believing  that  his  sole  salvation 
lay  in  this  marriage,  he  urged  Joseph  to  have  a  date 
fixed  for  the  wedding,  and  in  every  letter  which  he 
wrote  his  brother  at  that  time  messages  for  Desiree 
appeared. 

For  a  while  Mile.  Clary  was  a  faithful  correspond- 
ent, but  while  at  Genoa  with  her  sister  and  brother 
in-law  she  neglected  her  lover,  and  in  one  of  Napo 
leon's  letters  he  said,  "The  road  to  Genoa  leads 
through  the  waters  of  Lethe,"  called  her  the  "silent 
one,"  and  constantly  reproached  her  for  not  writing. 
Finally,  becoming  impatient,  he  determined  that  a 
definite  understanding  should  be  arrived  at,  and 
wrote  to  Joseph  that  he  must  interview  Desiree^ 
brother  and  bring  the  matter  to  a  head,  and  the 
following  day,  without  giving  his  first  letter 
time  to  reach  Joseph,  he  wrote  again  saying  : 
"This  affair  must  either  be  concluded  or  broken 
off.  I  await  an  answer  with  the  greatest  impa- 
tience." Then  a  month  passed,  and  save  101 
friendly  messages  there  was  no  correspondence  be- 
tween the  pair. 

The  truth  is,  that  Paris,  the  unknown,  fascinating 


22  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

city  which  he  had  entered  with  a  worn  uniform, 
leaky  boots,  and  a  suite  composed  of  a  couple  of 
hungry  aides-de-camps  had  interposed  itself  and  its 
captivating  women  between  Napoleon  and  the  little 
Marseillaise.  What  a  contrast  there  must  have 
been  between  the  immature  girl  and  the  elegant 
and  worldly  women  of  the  capital !  Desiree  could 
hardly  have  been  beautiful,  though  there  must  have 
been  a  certain  charm  about  her  soft  eyes  with  their 
penciled  brows,  retrousse  nose,  laughing  mouth  and 
reserved  yet  tender  manner  ;  but  between  the  young 
provincial  and  the  elegant,  graceful,  well-dressed 
and  beautiful,  if  artificial,  Parisian  women,  there 
was  the  same  difference  as  lies  between  hothouse 
fruit  and  that  which  ripens  in  the  open  air.  The 
Parisians,  created  for  a  life  of  gaiety  and  excitement, 
highly  refined  in  manner  and  adepts  in  the  art  of 
pleasing,  were  like  hothouse  fruit,  which,  carefully 
tended,  reaches  the  highest  state  of  perfection,  and 
when  exhibited  to  the  best  advantage  by  the  fruit- 
erer appears,  with  its  fine  color  and  bloom,  which 
the  winds  of  heaven  have  never  visited  too  roughly, 
much  more  appetizing  than  the  fruit  of  the  orchard 
which,  kissed  by  the  sun,  whipped  by  the  breeze, 
and  not  quite  ripe,  leaves  in  the  mouth  a  fresh  but 
somewhat  tart  taste. 

"  In  Paris  alone,"  wrote  Napoleon,  "  live  women 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  23 

capable  of  holding  the  helm.  A  woman  should  live 
six  months  in  Paris  to  learn  what  is  her  just  due, 
and  where  her  rightful  domain."  A  few  days  later 
he  wrote  :  "  The  women  here,  who  are  certainly  the 
most  beautiful  in  the  world,  play  a  great  role  in  all 
the  affairs  in  life." 

The  women  who  figured  conspicuously  in  the 
society  of  that  day  certainly  were  beautiful  and 
possessed  of  even  a  greater  charm,  a  perfect  knowl- 
edge of  the  amenities  of  life  ;  better  versed  in  the 
art  of  inspiring  affection  than  able  to  give  it,  they 
completely  fascinated  the  young  officer,  and,  having 
nothing  save  his  hand  to  offer,  he  proffered  that 
freely,  laying  his  heart  and  hand  first  at  the  feet  of 
Mme.  de  Permon,  then  proposing  to  Mme.  de  la 
Bouchardie,  later  to  Mme.  de  Lesparda  and  finally 
to  Mme.  de  Beauharnais  who  took  him  at  his  word. 

During  all  this  time  he  never  wrote  to  Desiree, 
and  at  last  she  lifted  her  voice  in  complaint,  but  so 
gently,  so  sweetly,  that  it  sounds  in  one's  ears  like 
the  sad  strains  of  an  JEolian  harp.  "You  have 
broken  my  heart,"  she  wrote  him,  "  yet  I  am  weak 
enough  to  forgive  you  everything.  You  are  mar- 
ried and  I  have  no  longer  the  right  to  love  and  think 
of  you  ;  the  only  consolation  which  remains  for 
me  is  to  be  assured  of  your  belief  in  my  constancy, 
then  I  long  for  death,  for  life  is  a  burden,  now  that 


24  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

I  may  not  consecrate  it  to  you.  I  cannot  accustom 
myself  to  the  thought  that  you  are  married — it  is 
too  hard,  too  cruel !  I  will  prove  to  you  that  I  am 
more  faithful  to  my  engagement  than  you  to  yours, 
and,  though  you  have  broken  the  chain  which  united 
us,  I  shall  hold  it  binding  ;  I  shall  never  marry.  I 
wish  you  every  happiness  and  all  prosperity  in  your 
marriage,  and  I  hope  that  the  woman  you  have 
chosen  will  make  you  as  happy  as  I  had  meant  to 
do,  and  as  you  deserve  ;  but  in  the  midst  of  your 
happiness  remember  poor  Eugenie  and  pity  her  sad 
fate." 

Forgetfulness  was  foreign  to  Bonaparte's  nature, 
and  the  memory  of  this  love  which  he  had  inspired 
was  always  a  tender  point  with  him  ;  from  a  flirta- 
tion he  had  insensibly  drifted  into  an  entanglement 
which  had  ambition  for  its  basis,  and  which  had 
resulted  in  the  breaking  of  a  heart,  and  throughout 
his  life  he  strove  to  undo  the  wrong  and  win  for- 
giveness. While  at  Milan,  in  1797,  he  planned  a 
brilliant  marriage  for  Desiree,  who  was  in  Eome 
with  her  sister  and  brother-in-law,  Joseph  being 
then  ambassador  at  the  court  of  Pius  VI.  and  gave 
a  warm  letter  of  recommendation  to  General 
Duphot  in  which  he  spoke  of  him  as  "  a  fine  man 
and  distinguished  officer  ;  "  and  in  a  personal  letter 
to  Joseph  he  said,  that  an  alliance  with  General 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  25 

Duphot  would  be  a  desirable  one.  Duphot  made  a 
favorable  impression  upon  Mile.  Clary,  and  their 
marriage  contract  was  about  to  be  signed  when  the 
terrible  scene  of  December  28th  took  place  and 
Desiree's  dress  was  stained  with  the  blood  of  her 
betrothed. 

After  refusing  several  offers,  Desiree  finally  con- 
sented, while  Napoleon  was  in  Egypt,  to  marry 
General  Bernadotte.  It  was  considered  a  fine 
match,  but  he  was  a  most  insupportable  Jacobite, 
narrow-minded  and  opinionated  ;  a  Bearnais  by 
birth,  he  yet  had  none  of  the  Gascon's  sprightliness 
or  readiness  of  speech,  but  possessed  all  their 
shrewdness  and  hid  under  apparent  frankness  a 
scheming  brain.  He  held  Mme.  de  Stael  to  be  the 
cleverest  of  her  sex  because  she  was  the  most 
pedantic,  and  he  spent  the  honeymoon  in  laying- 
down  the  law  to  his  young  wife. 

The  news  of  this  marriage  reached  Bonaparte  at 
Cairo,  and  although  Bernadotte  was  his  enemy,  and 
the  union  displeased  him,  he  wrote  most  kindly  to 
Desiree,  wishing  her  all  happiness. 

When  Napoleon  returned  from  Egypt  the  first 
person  to  solicit  a  favor  was  Mme.  Bernadotte,  who 
asked  him  to  stand  godfather  to  her  infant  son. 
Intuitively  she  knew  that  a  son  was  the  one  thing 
lacking  to  complete  Napoleon's  happiness,  and,  as  if 


26       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

to  spite  Josephine,  whom  she  hated,  and  whom  she 
always  spoke  of  as  the  "  old  woman,"  Desiree  boasted 
of  her  maternity.  Bonaparte  kindly  consented  to 
stand  for  the  child,  and  with  Ossian's  martial  ballads 
in  mind  named  the  baby  Oscar.  Years  later  Napo- 
leon said  :  "  Bernadotte's  becoming  a  marshal  of 
France,  prince  of  Pontecorvo  and  king  of  Sweden 
was  all  owing  to  his  marriage  with  my  first  sweet- 
heart," and  it  was  for  her  sake  that  Napoleon  par- 
doned all  Bernadotte's  disloyalty  during  the  Empire. 

From  the  very  first  Bernadotte  manifested  his 
opposition  to  Bonaparte  ;  nevertheless,  he  was  called 
to  a  seat  in  the  Council  of  State,  then  named 
general-in-chief  of  the  army  in  the  West,  where  he 
not  only  opposed,  but  openly  conspired  against  the 
First  Consul,  aspiring  to  gain  command  of  the  army. 
For  this  he  received  no  punishment.  Bonaparte 
simply,  in  order  to  get  rid  of  him,  appointed  him 
minister  plenipotentiary  to  the  United  States,  a 
post  which  Bernadotte  expressed  himself  as  per- 
fectly willing  to  accept,  playing  his  game  so  well, 
however,  that  the  frigate  which  was  to  bear  him 
to  his  destination  was  never  ready  to  sail. 

The  following  year  saw  the  conspiracy  in  which 
Moreau  was  implicated,  and  Bernadotte  again 
escaped  unpunished,  because  Napoleon  so  willed  it, 
Desiree's  welfare  being  always  in  his  mind  ;  he  did 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  27 

still  more  for  her,  for,  redeeming  Moreau's  estate, 
his  property  at  Grosbois,  and  his  hotel  in  the  rue 
d'Anjou,  for  which  he  paid  four  hundred  thousand 
francs,  he  presented  it  to  Bernadotte.  The  Empire 
established,  Napoleon,  for  Eugenie's  sake,  created 
her  husband  a  marshal  of  the  empire,  chief  of  the 
eighth  corps  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  president  of  the 
electoral  college  of  Vaucluse  and  Chevalier  de 
VAigle  Noir ;  for  Desiree's  sake  he  gave  the  couple 
an  income  of  three  hundred  thousand  francs,  a  lump 
sum  of  two  hundred  thousand  francs  and  the  sover- 
eignty of  the  principality  of  Pontecorvo.  For  the  love 
of  her  Napoleon  forgave  Bernadotte  after  Auer- 
staedt,Wagram,  and  Walcheren,  condoned  two  mili- 
tary blunders,  which  were  probably  something  more 
serious  than  blunders,  coming  as  they  did  on  top  of 
a  flagrant  conspiracy  in  which  Bernadotte,  Fouche* 
and  Talleyrand,  in  complicity  with  the  royalists, 
brought  into  play  the  same  tactics  by  which,  in  1814, 
the  return  of  Louis  le  Desiree  was  effected. 

Thus,  over  her  husband's  shoulders,  Napoleon's 
one-time  sweetheart  received  attentions  and  favors 
which  would  be  surprising  did  we  not  know  that  he 
was  ever  actuated  by  the  desire  to  atone  for  the  sor- 
row and  mortification  he  had  once  caused  her.  Two 
days  after  the  battle  of  Spandau,  in  which  Berna- 
dotte was  wounded,  Napoleon  wrote  to  him,  saying  : 


28  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

"  I  am  glad  to  learn  that  Mme.  Bernadotte  is 
with  you  ;  pray  give  her  my  affectionate  regards  and 
add  that  I  have  one  little  thing  to  reproach  her 
with.  She  might  have  written  me  a  line  giving  me 
the  news  of  Paris,  but  I  will  have  it  out  with  her 
when  we  meet." 

Although  Mme.  Bernadotte  never  appeared  at 
court,  for  she  detested  Josephine  and  the  entire 
Beauharnais  family  and  was  at  no  pains  to  conceal 
her  dislike,  Napoleon  showered  gifts  upon  her.  He 
presented  her  with  priceless  Sevres  vases  and  Gobelin 
tapestries,  it  was  for  her  that  he  reserved  one  of  the 
three  magnificent  fur  pelisses  which  the  emperor  of 
Kussia  presented  to  him  after  Erfurt  ;  yet,  appear- 
ances to  the  contrary,  his  friendship  was  entirely 
disinterested.  Was  it  not  of  Desiree's  aggrandize- 
ment that  he  was  thinking,  when,  after  Walcheren, 
he  meditated  sending  Bernadotte  to  Eome  as  gov- 
ernor-general to  represent  the  court  of  France  at 
the  Quirinal,  thus  creating  him  a  high  imperial 
dignitary  with  an  emolument  of  three  million  francs, 
and  putting  him  upon  an  equality  with  Borghese 
who  was  at  Turin,  Elias  at  Florence,  and  almost 
with  Eugene  who  was  at  Milan  ? 

When  the  sovereignty  of  Sweden  was  offered  to 
Eugene  de  Beauharnais  he  declined  the  honor,  not 
wishing  to  become  an  apostate,  and  it  was  due  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  29 

the  good-natured  neutrality  of  Napoleon  that  Berna- 
dotte  was  elected  hereditary  prince  of  that  country. 
If  Napoleon's  political  moves  at  this  period  are 
incomprehensible  to  some  historians,  it  is  because 
they  failed  to  take  into  account  the  part  which  his 
heart  played  in  the  affairs  of  state  ;  he  was  seduced 
by  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  woman  in  whom  he 
took  so  warm  an  interest  become  a  queen,  his  god- 
son heir  apparent  to  a  throne.  He  regulated  mi- 
nutely the  details  of  Desiree's  presentation  and  leave- 
taking  as  princess  of  Sweden,  and,  unprecedented 
favor,  he  invited  her  to  one  of  the  family's  Sun- 
day dinners.  He  conferred  upon  the  newly-elected 
prince  of  Sweden  a  purse  of  a  million  francs  from 
the  public  treasury,  repurchased  the  property  with 
which  he  had  originally  presented  him,  negotiated 
with  him  the  return  of  Pontecorvo  and  gave  a  title 
and  sum  of  money  to  Bernadotte's  brother ;  certainly 
Napoleon  was  justified  in  writing  to  Desiree,  "  You 
must  long  since  have  been  convinced  of  the  interest 
I  take  in  your  family. " 

Four  months  after  the  receipt  of  all  this  kindness 
Bernadotte  combined  with  Eussia  against  Napoleon  ; 
less  than  a  year  afterwards  everything  indicated 
that  a  rupture  between  France  and  Sweden  was  im- 
minent, and  Desiree,  who  had  most  reluctantly 
consented  to  take  a  short  journey  to  Stockholm, 


30  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

then  made  haste  to  return  to  her  hotel  in  the  rue 
4'Anjou. 

Then,  exercising  the  greatest  caution,  Napoleon 
wrote  to  the  minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  requesting 
that  he  speak  to  the  Swedish  ambassador  regarding 
Desiree's  presence  in  France,  and  state,  as  delicately 
as  possible,  that  he  was  sorry  to  see  that  the  Princess 
Koyal  had  come  into  the  country  without  permis- 
sion, which  was  not  customary,  and  that  he  regretted 
her  leaving  her  husband  under  the  existing  circum- 
stances. Desiree  paid  no  attention  to  the  ambas- 
sador's admonitions,  but  proceeded  to  install  herself, 
and  in  November,  when  war  was  about  to  be  declared, 
the  Emperor  wrote  a  second  time  and  sent  Cam- 
baceres  to  the  queen  of  Spain  (Julie  Clary)  saying 
that  he  wished  the  princess  to  leave  Paris  and  return 
to  Sweden  as  it  was  not  proper  that  she  should  be  in 
France  at  that  time. 

His  wishes  availed  nothing,  and  Desiree  remained 
in  Paris,  continued  to  order  her  dresses  from  Leroy, 
to  receive  her  friends  and  hold  her  receptions  ;  she 
went  to  the  baths  with  her  sister  and  returned  to 
Paris  as  though  nothing  unusual  was  taking  place  ; 
she  even  considered  it  singular  that  the  Frenchmen 
whom  she  received  should  blame  the  former  marshal 
of  the  Empire  who  had  then  assumed  command  of 
the  allied  forces  in  the  north  of  Germany.     If  one 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  31 

can  believe  those  who  claim  to  be  well  informed, 
Desiree  was  both  ungrateful  and  a  traitor,  and  while 
conveying  to  her  husband  Napoleon's  adjurations, 
acted  between  Bernadotte,  Fouche  and  Talleyrand 
as  an  intermediary. 

If  demonstrated  that  Desiree  profited  by  the  Em- 
peror's weakness  for  her  to  become  a  link  in  an  in- 
trigue between  conspirators  who  knew  each  other  of 
old,  one  must  think  badly  of  her  character,  and  it  is 
pleasanter  to  believe  that  she  remained  in  Paris 
because  of  her  love  for  the  city,  that  she  might  not 
leave  her  sister,  nieces  and  friends,  or  be  obliged  to 
alter  the  habits  of  a  lifetime. 

She  was  in  Paris  in  1814,  and  took  part,  with  other 
people  of  rank,  in  the  visit  of  Alexander  of  Kussia  ; 
she  was  still  there  in  1815,  during  the  hundred  days, 
and  on  the  17th  of  June,  the  eve  of  Waterloo,  she 
ordered  a  nankin  riding-habit  and  a  percale  dressing- 
gown  trimmed  with  Valenciennes  from  Leroy  ;  her 
lack  of  interest  in  Napoleon's  success  in  the  stupen- 
dous game  he  was  playing,  with  all  Europe  for  his 
adversaries,  clearly  proves  that  hers  was  the  forget- 
ful spirit. 


82       NAPOLEON,  LOVEE  AND  HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  in. 

JOSEPHINE  DE  BEAUHARNAIS. 

Towards  the  end  of  October,  1795,  hazard  brought 
together  the  Vicomtesse  de  Beauharnais  and  General 
Bonaparte.  The  latter  had  sprung  suddenly  from 
obscurity  to  publicity,  and  his  name,  but  recently  so 
little  known  that  Barras  had  written  it  "  Buona- 
Parta"  had  been  spoken  in  thunderous  tones  to  the 
whole  of  France  by  the  cannon  which  crushed  the 
rebel  sections  of  the  Convention. 

Second  in  command  of  the  army  of  the  Interior, 
soon  to  be  commander-in-chief,  Bonaparte  had  or- 
dered the  disarmament  of  the  Parisians.  A  youth 
came  to  his  quarters  begging  permission  to  keep  his 
father's  sword  ;  Napoleon  saw  the  boy  and,  being  at- 
tracted by  him,  granted  his  request,  and  the  mother 
then  called  to  express  her  thanks.  She  was  a  great 
lady,  a  ci-devant  vicomtesse,  the  widow  of  a 
president  of  the  Constituency,  of  a  courtier,  of  the 
commander-in-chief  of  the  army  of  the  Rhine,  and 
she  was  a  revelation  to  Bonaparte ;  her  title,  birth 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEB  AND  HUSBAND.  88 

and  education,  the  easy,  graceful  manner  in  which 
she  expressed  her  thanks,  all  charmed  him.  For  the 
first  time  in  his  twenty-six  years  of  life  the  young 
provincial,  to  whom  no  woman  of  quality  had  ever 
paid  the  slightest  attention,  found  himself  in  the 
presence  of  one  of  those  elegant,  accomplished  and 
desirable  creatures  whom  he  had  seen  and  admired 
from  afar.  He  was  in  a  position  which  gratified  his 
pride,  that  of  a  protector,  and  this  role  which  he 
played  for  the  first  time  suited  him  marvellously  ; 
while  Mme.  Beauharnais,  who  was  reduced  to  all 
sorts  of  expediencies,  discerned  at  once  what  manner 
of  man  she  had  to  deal  with. 

A  Creole,  native  of  the  island  of  Martinique,  she 
had  been  married  at  the  age  of  sixteen  to  the  Vicomte 
de  Beauharnais  ;  a  marriage  arranged  by  her  aunt, 
who  lived  openly  with  the  Marquis  de  Beauharnais, 
the  bridegroom's  father.  From  the  time  she  first 
came  to  Paris,  in  1779,  Josephine  Tascher  de  la  Pa- 
gerie,  Mme.  de  Beauharnais,  led  a  wretched  exist- 
ence ;  deceived  and  abandoned  by  her  husband,  and 
finally  separated  from  him,  through  no  fault  of  hers, 
she  had  no  social  distractions  ;  she  was  never  pre- 
sented at  court,  for  she  lived  with  her  aunt  whose 
position  was  equivocal,  but  it  is  claimed  that  after 
her  separation  from  her  husband  she  made  use  of 

her  liberty.     Eeturning  to  Martinique  she  remained 
8 


34  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

there  until  her  safety  was  threatened  by  the  insur- 
rection, when  she  escaped  to  France,  and  becoming 
reconciled  with  M.  de  Beauharnais,  who  was  then 
deputy  of  the  Etats-G6neraux,  president  of  the  Con- 
stituency and  general-in-chief  of  the  army  of  the 
Rhine,  she  enjoyed  a  brief  period  of  happiness  ;  her 
salon  was  then  frequented  by  men  of  note  and  letters, 
and  for  the  first  time  she  tasted  the  sweets  of  social 
position.  Then  came  the  Reign  of  Terror ;  Beau- 
harnais was  imprisoned  and  guillotined  and  she 
escaped  only  by  a  miracle. 

When  released  from  prison  Josephine  de  Beau- 
harnais was  thirty  years  of  age,  the  mother  of  two 
children  and  penniless.  Aided  by  some  feminine 
connections  which  she  had  formed  in  prison,  for  she 
had  none  elsewhere,  she  launched  herself  into 
society.  With  the  money  which  she  received  from 
Martinique,  loans  which  she  made  wherever  possible, 
debts  which  she  contracted  in  every  direction,  she 
managed  to  keep  up  an  appearance.  She  left  her 
apartment  in  the  rue  de  PUniversit£  and  rented 
from  Louise- Julie  Carreau,  the  wife  of  Talma,  for 
the  sum  of  four  thousand  pounds  a  year  in  cash,  or 
ten  thousand  in  notes,  a  small  hotel,  No.  6,  rue 
Chantereine,  where  she  installed  herself  in  October, 
ltd*. 

A  year  passed,  debts  accumulated,  and  nothing 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  35 

came  in ;  probably  with  creole  insouciance  Josephine 
failed  to  give  proper  consideration  to  her  financial 
affairs,  or  hoped  that  some  miracle  might  extricate 
her  from  her  difficulties,  and,  while  showing  herself 
everywhere  where  the  society  of  that  day  amused 
itself,  she  picked  up  acquaintances  who  were  in- 
strumental in  the  restoration  of  some  of  her 
husband's  property,  but  she  ran  through  it  as  fast 
as  it  came  into  her  possession.  She  possessed 
nothing,  neither  capital  nor  fixed  income.  At  her 
marriage  she  had  received  a  dot  of  one  hundred 
thousand  francs  from  which  she  was  to  receive  a 
yearly  interest  at  the  rate  of  five  per  cent.  ;  but  her 
father  was  dead,  her  mother  very  poor,  and 
the  island  blockaded  by  the  English.  Her  aunt, 
Mme.  Renaudin,  had  given  her  some  unimproved 
real  estate,  but  it  had  long  since  been  disposed  of  ; 
moreover,  no  one  can  squeeze  an  income  out  of  un- 
improved property,  and  of  credit  she  had  none. 
Mme.  Renaudin  helped  her  a  little  by  loans,  and 
there  were  one  or  two  obliging  bankers  who  accepted 
drafts  on  Martinique,  who  even  advised  her  going 
to  Hamburg  where  she  could  receive  her  remittances 
with  less  trouble  ;  but  she  was  in  a  desperate  posi- 
tion, credit  exhausted  and  age  creeping  on  ;  it  was 
at  this  critical  moment  that  General  Bonaparte 
rang  the  bell  of  the  house  in  the  rue  Chantereine 


36  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

and  returned  the  visit  of  Mme.  la  Vicomtesse  de 
Beauharnais. 

Napoleon  did  not  know  that  the  house,  which  was 
rather  imposing  in  appearance,  was  the  property  of 
Citizeness  Talma,  who,  when  she  was  Mile.  Julie,  had 
received  it  as  a  price  of  her  favors  to  a  lover  ;  nor 
did  he  know  that  this  property,  in  an  out-of-the-way 
corner  of  Paris,  within  a  stone's- throw  of  the  rue 
Saint-Lazare,  on  which  its  garden,  in  almost  its 
original  extent,  touches  to  this  day,  was  worth  only 
fifty  thousand  francs.  A  man-servant  responded 
to  the  bell  and  ushered  the  general  through  a  long 
open  passage,  on  one  side  of  which,  in  a  sort  of 
pavilion,  the  stable  was  situated,  its  open  door 
revealing  two  black  horses  and  a  red  cow ;  the 
carriage-house,  which  contained  a  shabby  carriage, 
was  carefully  closed. 

The  passage  gave  into  a  garden  in  the  centre  of 
which  stood  the  house,  a  modest  structure  of  one 
story  and  basement  surmounted  by  a  mansard  ; 
four  high  windows  pierced  its  fagade  and  a  low 
porch,  with  a  simple  balustrade  in  the  style  of  a 
terrace,  ran  across  it.  Bonaparte  mounted  the  steps, 
entered  an  antechamber,  scantily  furnished  by  a 
brass  fountain,  the  lower  half  of  an  oak  wardrobe 
and  a  pine  settee,  from  whence  the  servant  in- 
troduced him  into  the  dining-room,  where  he  was 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       37 

free  to  choose  between  a  seat  on  one  of  the  four 
black  haircloth-covered  chairs  which  surrounded 
the  mahogany  table,  or  to  wander  about  and  look 
at  the  engravings  which,  framed  in  black  and  gold, 
decorated  the  walls.  The  room  was  not  luxurious, 
but  here  and  there  serving  tables,  of  mahogany  or 
of  the  yellow  wood  of  Guadaloupe  with  marble  tops 
and  gilded  trimmings,  bore  witness  to  former  opu- 
lence ;  while  behind  the  glass  doors  of  two  cabinets 
a  collection  of  table  accessories,  and  a  tea-service  of 
English  plate  made  a  fine  showing  ;  of  silver,  in  the 
proper  sense  of  the  word,  there  was  none. 

Josephine,  all  tricked  out  by  her  maid,  the 
Citizeness  Louise  Compoint,  hastened  to  the  dining- 
room  to  greet  her  guest ;  she  could  not  receive  him 
elsewhere  as  the  first  floor  of  the  house  comprised 
only  that  apartment,  her  bed-chamber  and  a  small 
apartment  which  served  as  a  dressing-room. 

Josephine's  bedroom,  though  simple,  was  tasteful 
and  pretty,  the  furniture  was  of  mahogany  and  the 
yellow  wood  of  Guadaloupe  ;  there  was  a  gay  toilet 
set  of  blue  nankin  with  decorations  of  red  and 
yellow  coxcombs,  the  low  double  bed  was  daintily 
draped,  and  the  room  was  ornamented  by  a  harp 
of  Renaud's  make  and  a  little  marble  bust  of 
Socrates ;  the  dressing-room,  with  the  exception 
of  a  Renaud  piano,  was  chiefly  furnished  with  look- 

\ 


88  NAPOLEON,  LOVEk  AND  HUSBAND. 

ing  glasses ;  there  was  one  on  the  toilet-table,  another 
on  the  chest  of  drawers,  one  on  the  night  stand,  and 
over  the  chimney  hung  a  double  pier-glass. 

Such  were  the  surroundings  of  this  high-bred 
woman.  Except  on  festive  occasions,  when  she 
brought  out  a  small  service  of  blue  and  white  por- 
celain, she  ate  off  earthen- ware  ;  the  table  linen  was 
composed  of  eight  tableclothes,  of  which  four  were 
of  bird's-eye,  and  all  so  worn,  that  when  the  inven- 
tory was  taken  the  entire  supply  of  household  linen 
was  estimated  at  a  value  of  four  pounds.  Bonaparte 
was  ignorant  of  all  this  ;  he  did  not  know  that  the 
elegant  and  charming  woman  who  stood  before  him, 
whose  tasteful  toilet  pleased  his  eye,  whose  infinite 
grace  troubled  his  senses,  possessed  scarcely  enough 
underwear  to  clothe  her  decently  ;  he  saw  only  a 
charming  and  elegant  woman,  a  woman  to  arouse 
desire. 

Josephine's  hair  was  brown,  of  a  fine  quality  but 
not  over  luxurious ;  however,  in  those  days,  blonde 
wigs  and  a  suspicion  of  powder  were  in  vogue ;  her 
complexion  was  rather  dark  and  already  somewhat 
faded,  but  art  concealed  the  ravages  of  time ;  her 
teeth  were  poor,  but  were  never  displayed,  and  she 
had  a  dear  little  mouth  which  was  always  curved 
in  a  slight  smile,  the  sweetness  of  which  accorded 
with  the  exceeding  softness  of  her  eyes,  with  her 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.        39 

gentle  expression  and  the  touching  quality  of  her 
voice,  to  catch  a  sound  of  which  the  servants,  in 
later  years,  loitered  in  the  corridors  of  the  Tuileries. 
Her  nose  was  small,  with  sensitive,  quivering  nostrils, 
and  slightly  inclined  to  be  retroussS. 

Her  head,  however,  was  not  to  be  compared  with 
her  tall,  supple  body,  which  terminated  in  slender, 
arched  feet,  whose  beauty  may  yet  be  divined  by  a 
glance  at  the  shoes  she  once  wore.  Her  form  was 
unfettered,  she  did  not  even  wear  a  girdle  to  support 
the  bosom,  which  was,  however,  very  small.  General 
effect  is  everything,  and  this  woman  possessed  a 
charm  and  grace  peculiarly  her  own  ;  long  practice 
had  rendered  her  every  movement  graceful  and 
refined  ;  she  never  lost  an  advantage,  was  constantly 
on  her  guard,  leaving  nothing  to  chance,  and  she 
had  that  indefinable  nonchalance  of  the  Creole  which 
is  so  attractive,  while  about  her  floated  like  a  per- 
fume that  sensuality  which  makes  the  Creole  woman 
essentially  feminine  and  is  so  intoxicating  to  man. 
Napoleon,  younger  and  more  inexperienced  than  the 
majority  of  men,  was  peculiarly  susceptible  to  it ; 
it  was  that  about  the  woman  which  had  appealed 
to  him  at  their  first  meeting,  even  while  she  dazzled 
him  by  her  imposing  manner,  which  he  spoke  of  as 
being  "that  calm  and  dignified  demeanor  which 
belongs  to  the  old  riqime" 


40  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

Mme.  de  Beauharnais  saw  that  the  young  officer 
was  completely  captivated,  and  when  he  called  the 
following  day,  and  the  day  after,  and  so  on  day 
after  day,  she  understood  that  her  empire  over  him 
was  absolute.  Seeing  Mme.  de  Beauharnais  sur- 
rounded by  men  of  the  old  court  who  were  his 
superiors  by  rank  and  birth,  Segur,  Montesquiou, 
Caulaincourt,  all  of  whom  treated  him  with  a  cer- 
tain degree  of  familiarity,  Napoleon  failed  to 
perceive  that  these  men,  who,  in  his  estimation,  had 
lost  nothing  of  their  former  prestige,  came  to  her 
house  as  bachelors,  to  divine  that  their  wives  would 
not  visit  there.  Coming  from  the  Jacobin  circle  in 
which  he  had  always  lived,  and  which  at  Vaucluse, 
Toulon,  Nice,  and  Paris  had  advanced  his  interest, 
he  took  infinite  delight  in  the  company  in  which  he 
found  himself.  The  luxuries  of  the  lady,  like  her 
nobility  and  social  position,  were  all  delusions,  but 
his  senses  aiding,  were  accepted  by  Napoleon  as 
realities. 

A  fortnight  after  his  first  visit  they  were  lovers. 
Judging  from  writings  they  were  still  only  friends, 
but  a  witness  of  the  times  tells  us  that  transitions 
were  rapid,  that  fine  distinctions  were  not  made,  and 
the  world  moved  fast. 

They  loved  passionately.  Such  love  was  natural 
enough  on  his  part ;  on  hers — well,  possibly  it  was 


41 

equally  so,  for  Bonaparte  was  a  new  toy,  a  savage 
to  be  tamed,  and  the  lion  of  the  day. 

To  a  woman  like  Josephine,  no  longer  in  her  first 
youth,  such  ardor,  such  intense  passion,  burning 
kisses  and  constant  craving  for  her  presence,  was 
the  most  flattering  of  tributes,  for  it  proved  that 
she  was  still  beautiful  and  able  to  please.  All  this 
made  Napoleon  attractive  as  a  lover,  but  hardly  rec- 
ommended him  for  a  husband ;  however,  when  he 
offered  himself,  he  was  accepted,  for  she  was  in  a 
desperate  situation  and  had  nothing  to  lose  by  the 
marriage,  while  it  offered  a  chance  of  betterment. 
Bonaparte  was  young  and  ambitious,  was  general- 
in- chief  of  the  army  of  the  Interior,  the  Directory 
had  not  forgotten  that  it  was  he  who  arranged  the 
plans  for  the  last  Italian  campaign,  and  Carnot 
proposed  creating  him  commander-in-chief  "in  the 
approaching  campaign  ;  such  a  marriage,  therefore, 
might  be  her  salvation  and  committed  her  to  noth- 
ing, for  divorces  were  easily  obtained  in  those  days 
when  there  was  no  longer  any  question  of  priests 
and  religious  ceremonies,  and  it  was  simply  a  con- 
tract which  endured  as  long  as  both  parties  desired 
to  observe  it,  but  which  meant  nothing  either  to  the 
woman's  conscience  or  to  society. 

Bonaparte  was  a  man  capable  of  great  things,  and 
Josephine  argued  that  if  she  played  her  part  well 


42  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

she  would  share  any  honors  accruing  to  him,  while 
if  he  was  killed  she  was  sure  of  a  pension  as  his 
widow.  Nevertheless,  she  took  some  precautions ; 
in  the  first  place  she  dissimulated  about  her  age,  for 
she  did  not  wish  either  her  young  lover,  or  any  one, 
to  know  that  she  had  passed  her  thirty-second  year. 
Accompanied  by  Calmelet,  her  confidential  adviser 
and  one  of  the  guardians  of  her  children,  and  by  a 
person  of  the  name  of  Lesourd,  she  went  to  a  notary's 
where  those  two  certified:  "That  Marie  Josephine 
Tascher,  widow  of  Citizen  Beauharnais,  was  well 
known  to  them,  that  she  was  a  native  of  the  island 
of  Martinique,  and  that  as  the  island  was  at  that 
moment  occupied  by  the  English  it  was  impossible 
for  her  to  secure  a  certificate  of  her  birth ; "  armed 
with  this  legal  document  Josephine  was  able  to 
declare  to  the  civil  officer  that  she  was  born  on  the 
23d  of  June,  1767,  whereas  she  was  born  on  June 
23d,  1763. 

Josephine  also  deceived  Napoleon  regarding  her 
fortune,  which  one  would  suppose  was  a  difficult 
thing  to  accomplish,  but  Napoleon  accepted  all  her 
statements,  and  there  was  drawn  up  privately, 
with  only  the  general's  aide-de-camp,  Lemarrois, 
as  witness,  the  strangest  marriage  contract  which 
had  ever ""  come  under  the  notary's  observation. 
There  was  no  property  in  common  of  any  sort,  com- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  43 

plete  authority  was  given  by  the  prospective  bride- 
groom to  the  prospective  bride,  the  guardianship  of 
her  children  by  her  first  marriage  remained  entirely 
with  her,  and  a  dowry  of  fifteen  hundred  pounds 
of  rent  was  bequeathed  her  in  the  event  of  his  death, 
and  in  that  event  all  property  belonging  to  her 
previous  to  this  marriage  was  to  be  restored. 

Personal  property  there  was  none ;  all  that  the 
future  wife  possessed  belonged  to  the  estate  of  her- 
self and  the  late  M.  de  Beauharnais,  and  no  inven- 
tory of  it  existed  ;  it  was  therefore  impossible  for  her 
to  decide  whether  she  would  keep  it  for  her  personal 
use  or  share  it  with  Bonaparte.  Such  an  inventory 
was  taken  two  years  later  and  Josephine  refused  all 
claim  to  the  property.  In  those  two  years  she  had 
bettered  herself.  Napoleon  frankly  avowed  his  lack 
of  fortune,  declaring  himself  possessed  of  no  real 
estate  and  no  worldly  possessions  other  than  his 
wardrobe  and  military  equipments  which  were 
valued  by  him  at  a  nominal  sum  suggested  by  the 
notary.  He  was  really,  as  the  notary  said  to  Mme. 
de  Beauharnais,  "as  poor  as  a  church  mouse." 
Bonaparte  himself  thought  the  declaration  of  his 
worldly  possessions  ridiculous,  and  simply  erased 
that  paragraph  from  the  marriage  contract. 

The  contract  was  dated  March  8th,  1796,  and  the 
following  day  the  marriage  was  celebrated  by  a 


44  [NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

civil  officer,  who  was  gracious  enough  to  register 
the  groom's  age  as  twenty-eight,  and  the  bride's  as 
twenty-nine  instead  of  thirty-three  ;  Barras,  Lemar- 
rois  (who  was  not  then  of  age),  Tallien  and  the  in- 
evitable Calmelet  were  the  witnesses.  There  is  no 
mention  of  the  parents  of  either  party  having  sanc- 
tioned the  marriage,  and  probably  they  were  not 
consulted. 

Two  days  afterwards  General  Bonaparte  left  to 
join  the  army  in  Italy,  while  Mme.  Bonaparte  re- 
mained at  her  home  in  the  rue  Chantereine. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  45 


CHAPTEB  IV. 

CITIZENESS  BONAPARTE. 

Napoleon  was  ten  days  on  the  road  between  Paris 
and  Nice,  and  from  every  posthouse  where  he 
stopped  for  relays,  he  dispatched  a  letter  to  the 
"  Citizeness  Bonaparte,  in  care  of  Citizeness  Beau- 
harnais." 

In  these  letters  there  is  naught  save  love  ;  ambi- 
tion finds  no  place  ;  there  is  no  reference  to  his  plans, 
no  incertitude  expressed  regarding  the  future  ;  he 
was  so  sure  of  himself,  that  he  felt  no  need  of  a 
confidant,  or  of  discussing  his  intentions  and  the 
likelihood  of  his  success.  He  was  like  a  prince  of 
bygone  days  sallying  forth  to  an  assured  victory. 
and  his  letters  to  his  bride  breathed  only  passionate 
love. 

From  the  moment  that  he  arrived  at  Nice,  even 
while  speaking  a  few  brief  words  to  the  demoralized 
troops  which  constituted  his  army,  words  which 
encouraged  their  hopes  and  roused  their  enthusiasm, 
even  while  enforcing  obedience  from  the  revolting 


46  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

generals,  while  organizing,  equipping  and  provid- 
ing for  the  nourishment  of  the  disorganized  forces 
which  he  was  to  lead  across  the  Alps,  he  found  time 
to  write  letter  after  letter  to  Josephine.  "  When 
tempted  to  curse  my  fate,"  he  wrote,  "I  lay  my 
hand  over  my  heart,  and,  feeling  your  picture  there, 
love  renders  me  supremely  happy,  and  all  of  life 
seems  bright,  save  the  time  which  I  must  spend 
away  from  you."  Napoleon  never  parted  from  the 
miniature  to  which  he  referred,  showed  it  to  every 
one  and  prayed  to  it  at  night,  and  when  by  accident 
the  glass  was  broken,  he  was  terribly  distressed, 
fancying  it  presaged  death. 

Bonaparte's  love  for  Josephine  was  like  the  ador- 
ation of  the  faithful,  the  exaltation  of  the  be- 
liever ;  if  the  soldiers  knew  of  his  infatuation  they 
did  not  make  sport  of  it,  for  the  majority  were  of 
his  age  and  race,  and  extravagant  dreams  filled 
their  brains  as  well  as  his. 

4  In  spite  of  his  youth,  Napoleon  was  just  the  man 
to  lead  such  a  strangely  assorted  army  ;  his  thin, 
pale,  immobile  face,  framed  by  long  locks,  which  he 
wore  slightly  powdered,  impressed  the  soldiers  by 
its  inscrutability,  his  piercing  eyes  seemed  to  read 
their  very  souls,  his  glance  cowed  them.  Below 
him  in  command,  were  such  men  as  Augereau,  a 
deserter  from  half  the  armies  of  Europe,  a  familiar 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       47 

old  fellow  and  a  bully,  and  Massena,  one-time 
smuggler  and  pirate,  as  fond  of  women  as  he  was 
of  money,  and  indifferent  to  the  means  of  securing 
both.  These  men  would  gladly  have  overthrown 
the  young  upstart  who  was  in  command  of  them, 
but  he  looked  them  straight  in  the  eye,  and,  like 
wild  beasts  before  the  tamer,  they  growled,  but 
grovelled.  The  mass  of  officers  and  soldiers,  for 
there  were  not  many  such  ruffians  as  Landrieux,  did 
not  need  to  be  cowed,  for  their  hearts  were  Napo- 
leon's from  the  first ;  the  greater  part  of  the  men 
had  been  in  the  Egyptian  army  and  had  served  an 
apprenticeship  of  abnegation  ;  each  had  in  his  soul 
something  of  the  spirit  of  La  Tour  D'Auvergne,  and 
was  animated  by  patriotism  and  love  of  glory. 

In  this  war,  officers  refused  advancement  as  an 
insult,  corporals  turned  the  tide  of  battle,  common 
soldiers  improvised  themselves  into  generals  and 
devised  strategic  movements  ;  an  electric  current  of 
genius  circulated  in  the  ranks  ;  men  disdained  death 
and  were  gay  in  the  face  of  it  with  joyous  stoicism. 
In  all  these  respects  Napoleon  was  a  worthy  com- 
mander; to  vanquish,  to  conquer  the  enemies  of 
France,  were  the  means  by  which  he  would  be 
enabled  to  see  his  beloved  and  have  her  at  his  side,  I 
and  with  this  desire  urging  him  on,  he  won,  in  April, 
1796,  six  battles,  took  twenty-one  flags  and  forced 


48  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

Piedmont  to  capitulate.  "  My  brave  boys,"  he  said 
to  his  troops,  "I  appreciate  and  am  grateful  for 
your  gallant  conduct ! "  and  doubtless  he  was  thor- 
oughly sincere,  for,  thanks  to  their  gallantry,  Jose- 
phine could  join  him. 

Napoleon  despatched  Junot  to  Paris  with  the  hard- 
won  trophies  and  with  orders  to  bring  Mme.  Bona- 
parte back  with  him,  and  to  his  wife  he  had  written, 
"  Hasten,  for  I  warn  you  that  if  you  linger  you  will 
find  me  ill ;  fatigue  and  your  absence  combined  are 
more  than  I  can  bear."  It  was  no  lie  to  draw  her 
to  his  side,  for  he  was  consumed  by  a  continual  fever 
and  exhausted  by  a  persistent  cough  ;  -the  itch,  from 
which  he  had  suffered  at  Toulon,  had  reappeared  and 
affected  his  stomach,  making  him  almost  consump- 
tive, while  his  incessant  craving  for  Josephine  also 
wore  upon  his  health.  He  wrote  to  her,  "  You  are 
coming,  are  you  not,  my  darling  ?  You  will  soon 
be  here  at  my  side  and  I  can  hold  you  in  my  arms, 
close  to  my  heart  which  beats  only  for  you.  Oh, 
take  wings,  beloved,  and  fly  to  me  !  " 

No  other  woman  had  the  least  attraction  for  him. 
At  Cairo,  a  prisoner  of  war,  the  mistress  of  a  Pied- 
montese  officer  was  brought  to  his  tent ;  she  was 
young  and  beautiful  and  at  sight  of  her  his  eye 
gleamed  for  a  moment,  then  he  greeted  the  captive 
with  calm  and  gentle  dignity,    and    keeping  his 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  ASD  HUSBAND.        49 

officers  with  him,  arranged  for  her  transportation 
to  the  outposts  and  return  to  her  lover. 

In  this  case  he  may  possibly  have  been  actuated 
by  motives  of  policy,  but  at  Milan,  when  Grassini 
made  every  effort  to  seduce  him,  singing  for  him  so 
exquisitely  that  the  whole  army  were  enthralled, 
he  paid  the  singer  but  repulsed  the  woman.  There 
was  only  one  woman  in  the  world  for  him  then,  and 
the  voluptuous  happiness  he  found  in  her  arms  satis- 
fied all  his  desires,  he  longed  only  for  her  caresses 
and  was  impatient  for  her  arrival. 

Following  the  fortunes  of  war  was  not  to 
Josephine's  taste  ;  she  found  it  far  more  agreeable 
to  remain  in  Paris  and  enjoy  the  fruits  of  her  hus- 
band's success,  which  had  made  her  one  of  the  most 
courted  women  of  the  capital,  than  to  share  his 
fortunes  in  camp.  No  one  refused  credit  to  the  wife 
of  the  general-in-chief  of  the  French  forces  in  Italy  ; 
moreover,  Bonaparte  had  sent  her  power  of  attorney, 
so  that  she  was  able  to  indulge  her  extravagant 
tastes  ;  she  was  at  every  fete  and  ball,  at  all  the 
receptions  at  the  Luxembourg,  which  under  Barras 
had  recovered  their  princely  splendor,  and  where, 
next  to  Mme.  Tallien,  who  was  the  social  leader, 
Josephine  was  the  most  important  of  the  ladies, 

She  was  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes  when,  after  Junot 
had  presented  the  Directory  with  the  trophies  of  her 


50  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

husband's  battles,  she  left  the  hall  leaning  on 
his  arm,  and  she  gloried  in  the  adulation  which 
her  husband's  victories  had  brought  her.  When 
she  entered  her  box  at  the  theatre  the  parquet 
rose  as  one  man  and  cheered  ;  at  official  fetes,  at 
the  celebration  of  the  victories,  it  almost  seemed  to 
Josephine  that  the  honor  was  hers,  so  great  was  the 
attention  paid  her.  Paris,  too,  enchained  her  ;  the 
city  had  taken  such  a  hold  on  her  that  the  idea  of 
living  elsewhere  was  intolerable,  and  ever  after- 
wards that  feeling  predominated  ;  she  strove  to  the 
end  of  her  days  to  remain  in  Paris. 

Napoleon  awaited  her  arrival  in  a  state  bordering 
on  frenzy  ;  he  was  both  anxious  and  tormented  by 
jealousy,  and  wrote  letter  after  letter,  sent  courier 
after  courier  to  hasten  her  coming.  "What  are 
you  doing  ? "  he  wrote  her,  "why  do  you  not  come  ? 
If  it  is  a  lover  that  detains  you,  beware  of  Othello's 
dagger ! " 

Josephine  found  it  necessary  to  invent  excuses  for 
her  delay,  as  Joseph  Bonaparte  had  been  sent  to 
hasten  her  departure,  and  Junot,  in  spite  of  the 
pleasure  he  took  in  exhibiting  himself  in  his  hussar 
uniform,  was  about  to  rejoin  the  army,  so,  unless 
she  could  hit  upon  a  really  good  excuse  for  remain- 
ing in  Paris,  she  knew  she  must  accompany  him. 
After  Cherasco  had  followed  Lodi,  and  the  army 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  51 

was  at  that  moment  at  Milan,  therefore  it  was  no 
longer  a  bivouac  but  a  palace  which  awaited  her. 

Poor  health  was  an  old  story,  but  an  illness  oc- 
casioned by  the  beginning  of  pregnancy  she  thought 
would  be  an  excellent  excuse,  and,  indeed,  when  that 
news  reached  Bonaparte  he  was  delighted.  In  one 
of  his  letters  he  says  to  her,  "  I  have  wronged  you 
greatly,  and  I  do  not  know  how  I  shall  ever  expiate 
my  fault ;  I  reproached  you  for  remaining  in  Paris 
when  you  were  suffering.  Forgive  me,  darling,  for 
the  love  with  which  you  have  inspired  me  has  de- 
prived me  of  my  common  sense  ;  I  shall  never  regain 
it ;  I  am  incurable.  I  am  filled  with  gloomy  fore- 
bodings ;  I  fear  for  your  safety ;  could  I  but  hold 
you  in  my  arms  I  should  be  happy  ;  but  the  distance 
which  separates  us  fills  me  with  misgivings.  A 
child,  as  adorable  as  yourself,  will  soon  lie  in  your 
arms !  .  .  .  It  seems  to  me  that  could  I  but  see 
you  once,  hold  you  for  an  instant  in  my  arms,  I 
should  be  content,  but,  unfortunate  man  that  I  am, 
I  cannot  go  to  you  even  for  a  moment." 
On  that  same  day  he  wrote  to  Joseph  : 
"My  friend,  lam  in  despair,  for  my  wife,  the 
only  creature  in  the  world  whom  I  love,  is  ill,  and  I 
am  oppressed  with  the  most  gloomy  forebodings 
because  of  her  condition.  I  beseech  you  to  tell  me 
exactly  how  she  is,  and  by  the  tie  of  blood  and  the 


I 


52  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

tender  friendship  which  unites  us,  beg  that  you  will 
give  her  the  tender  care  which  it  would  be  my 
greatest  joy  to  give  her.  You  cannot  love  her  as  I 
do,  but  you  are  the  only  person  on  earth  who  can, 
even  in  a  measure,  take  my  place  ;  you  are  the  only 
man  on  earth  for  whom  I  have  always  entertained  a 
warm  and  constant  affection,  you  and  my  Josephine 
are  the  only  beings  in  whom  I  feel  any  interest. 
Keassure  me ;  tell  me  the  truth.  You  know  my 
ardent  nature,  that  I  have  never  loved  before,  that 
Josephine  is  the  first  woman  I  have  ever  truly  cared 
for,  and  you  can  understand  that  her  illness  drives 
me  distracted.  I  am  alone,  given  over  to  fears  and 
ill  health,  nobody  writes  to  me  and  I  feel  deserted 
by  all,  even  by  you.  If  my  wife  is  able  to  stand  the 
journey  I  desire  that  she  should  "Come  to  me,  for  I 
need  her.  I  love  her  to  distraction  and  I  can  no 
longer  endure  this  separation.  If  she  has  ceased  to 
love  me  my  mission  on  earth  is  finished.  I  leave 
myself  in  your  hands,  my  best  of  friends,  and  I 
beseech  you  to  so  arrange  matters  that  my  courier 
will  not  be  obliged  to  remain  in  Paris  more  than  six 
hours,  to  hasten  his  return  with  the  news  which 
will  give  me  new  life/' 

Napoleon  had  become  really  desperate  and  threat- 
ened, if  his  wife  did  not  join  him,  to  send  in  his 
resignation,    abandon    everything  and    return    to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  53 

Paris.  Josephine  realized  that  further  excuses  were 
futile  ;  she  could  not  deceive  Joseph  by  pretending 
illness,  for  he  saw  that  she  was  able  to  go  to  every 
entertainment  and  bore  the  fatigues  of  pleasure 
remarkably  well ;  while  as  for  her  last  and  best  ex- 
cuse, that  which  had  touched  her  husband  so  deeply,' 
it  was  too  evidently  a  fiction  for  her  to  insist  longer 
upon  it.  .  So  at  last  she  was  obliged  to  prepare  for 
the  hated  journey,  and  after  a  farewell  supper  at 
the  Luxembourg,  m  the  lowest  of  spirits,  blinded 
by  tears,  she  stepped  into  a  travelling  carriage  and, 
in  company  with  Joseph  Bonaparte,  Junot,  Citizen 
Hippolyte  Charles,  the  assistant  of  Adjutant-General 
Leclerc,  her  maid  Louise  Compoint  and  her  dog 
Fortune,  she  started  for  Milan. 

Louise  Compoint,  nicknamed  the  officious,  ate  at 
the  same  table  with  her  mistress,  was  almost  as  well 
dressed;  and  had  little  of  the  menial  about  her. 
Her  room  in  the  rue  Chantereine  in  nowise  resem- 
bled a  servant's,  but  with  its  curtains  and  portieres 
of  Siamese  stuff,  alabaster  and  gilt  candelabrum, 
Sevres  statuettes  and  jardinieres  and  handsome 
brass-trimmed  furniture  was  really  better  appointed 
than  Mme.  Bonaparte's.  Louise  Compoint's  relations 
to  Josephine  were  doubtless  those  of  a  confidante 
whom  it  was  desirable  to  conciliate,  for,  although 
they  afterwards  disagreed,  she  paid  the  girl  a  pen- 


54  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

sion  up  to  1805.  During  the  journey,  which  was 
slow  and  seems  to  have  been  designedly  prolonged, 
Junot  managed  to  ingratiate  himself  into  Mile. 
Louise's  good  graces,  and  although  Josephine  sub- 
sequently showed  herself  far  from  indifferent  to 
the  admiration  of  M.  Charles,  she  was  for  the 
moment  furious  because  Junot  preferred  her  maid 
to  herself. 

Although  the  travellers  left  Paris  at  the  end  of 
June  they  had  not  reached  Milan  on  the  8th  of  July, 
and  Bonaparte,  who  was  obliged  to  leave  there  and 
go  to  face  Wurmser's  army,  sent  a  courier  begging 
his  wife  to  join  him  at  Yerona.  "I  need  you,"  he 
wrote,  "  for  I  feel  that  I  am  on  the  eve  of  a  severe 
illness."  Josephine,  however,  preferred  to  await  his 
return  to  Milan,  whither  he  rushed  the  moment  he 
could  leave  the  field,  and  they  spent  two  days  to- 
gether, then  he  was  obliged  to  face  the  crisis  at 
Castiglione. 

Never  was  there  a  graver  situation,  danger  more 
imminent,  it  was  not  simply  a  question  of  avoiding 
defeat,  but  of  annihilation  ;  yet  during  the  terrible 
mental  strain  which  followed,  when  he  was  massing 
his  divisions  and  manoeuvring  to  prevent  disaster, 
at  the  moment  when  his  destiny  was  at  stake  and 
his  star  seemed  to  waver,  when,  for  the  first  time,  he 
was  assailed  with  doubts  of  himself,  Napoleon  still 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.        55 

found  time  for  a  daily  love-letter.  uShow  me  some 
of  your  faults,"  he  wrote,  "be  less  beautiful,  less 
gracious,  tender  and  good,  above  all  never  be  jeal- 
ous and  never  weep,  for  your  tears  drive  me  crazy, 
they  fire  my  blood.  .  .  .  Eejoin  me  as  soon  as  you 
possibly  can,  that  ere  death  can  part  us  we  may  have 
more  happy  days  together." 

Throughout  their  entire  separation  the  same  wild 
passion  was  daily  expressed  ;  in  order  that  Josephine 
should  rejoin  him,  so  that  he  might  sometimes 
spend  a  day  or  an  hour  in  her  society,  he  entreated, 
implored,  and  finally  was  forced  to  command  ;  and 
she,  grown  a  little  more  submissive  in  the  face  of 
conquered  Italy  and  that  fantastic  army,  feeling 
vaguely  that  her  husband  belonged  to  the  race  of 
chiefs  whom  one  must  obey,  made  the  effort  to  join 
him. 

It  was  a  strange  journey  which  Josephine  made 
across  a  country  torn  by  war ;  sometimes  she  was 
forced  to  flee  before  the  Austrian  forces,  sometimes 
she  made  a  triumphal  passage  through  the  towns  of 
new  Italy,  where  she  was  welcomed  like  a  sovereign  ; 
it  was  made  through  armies  sometimes  victorious, 
sometimes  disbanded ;  she  travelled  in  carriages, 
which  were  continually  being  upset,  and  on  horse- 
back ;  and  in  the  brief  intervals  of  her  perilous  jour- 
ney Bonaparte  made  ardent  love  within  the  sound 


56  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

of  drums  beating  a  charge,  under  fire,  and  by  the 
light  of  bombarded  cities. 

When  Josephine  was  with  him  Bonaparte  spent 
the  entire  time  at  her  side  in  an  attitude  of  devo- 
tion ;  when  absent,  he  sent  courier  after  courier 
bearing  messages  of  affection  ;  from  every  one  of 
those  unknown  towns,  whose  names  he  rendered 
immortal,  he  dispatched  letters  in  which  passionate 
declarations  of  tenderness,  of  confidence  and  even 
of  gratitude  are  mingled  with  jealous  imprecations. 
It  was  a  constant  cry  from  a  hungry  heart,  from  a 
man  who  had  lived  chastely,  towards  the  mistress 
older,  more  worldly,  more  sophisticated  than  him- 
self, who  satisfied  his  heart  and  senses. 

Unintentionally,  Bonaparte  borrowed  his  episto- 
lary style  from  Eousseau,  not  that  he  was  insincere 
or  that  his  love  was  a  pretext  for  literary  efforts,  but 
because  he  was  imbued  with  that  style ;  he  did  not 
know,  and  never  learned  how  to  speak  of  love  in 
any  other  fashion  ;  he  was  a  disciple  of  Jean- Jacques 
to  the  end  of  his  days.  Josephine  was  neither  of  the 
same  nationality,  education  or  temperament,  and 
his  perpetual  elation  and  continuous  demands  upon 
her  affection  wearied  and  bored  her.  It  was  pleas- 
ant to  hold  the  first  place  in  the  heart  of  so  extraor- 
dinary a  man,  and  his  youthful  fervor  interested 
her  at  first,  but  there  was  a  brutality  in  the  expres- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  57 

sion  of  his  love  which  shocked,  rather  than  appealed 
to  her  jaded  senses,  and  often  rendered  her  husband's 
caresses  repugnant. 

She  was  recompensed  in  a  measure  for  the  un- 
pleasant experiences  of  her  sojourn  in  Italy  by  the 
offerings  from  cities,  princes,  generals  and  mer- 
chants which  poured  in  upon  her  ;  but  although  she 
received  and  spent  a  great  deal  of  money,  she  was 
not  a  mercenary  woman.  As  prodigal  as  short- 
sighted, easily  tempted  and  yielding,  Josephine  ac- 
cepted willingly  and  gave  capriciously,  seeing  no 
wrong  in  either  course,  and  simply  obeying  her  in- 
stincts ;  nevertheless  she  managed  that  Bonaparte 
remained  in  ignorance  of  her  doings,  knowing  that 
he  entertained  scruples  which  were  incomprehensi- 
ble to  her.  Among  the  first  presents  offered  her  in 
Italy  was  a  box  of  rare  medals,  a  propos  of  which 
Bonaparte  had  so  strongly  expressed  his  disapproval 
that  she  had  felt  obliged  to  return  them  ;  after  that 
experience  she  took  good  care  to  keep  him  in  igno- 
rance, and  whenever  he  questioned  her  as  to  how 
jewels,  valuable  pictures  and  priceless  antiquities 
came  into  her  possession  she  accounted  for  them  by 
clever  inventions,  in  which  proceeding  she  was  ably 
seconded  by  her  accomplices. 

There  were  many  things  of  which  Bonaparte  was 
ignorant,  among  them   the   existence  of  General 


58  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

Leclerc's  assistant,  M.  Charles,  who  had  remained 
in  Milan,  and  paraded  the  streets,  foppishly  arrayed 
in  a  cavalry  uniform,  invariably  appearing  at  the 
Palace  Serbelloni  during  its  master's  absence.  M. 
Charles  was  a  well-built,  active  young  man,  gay, 
witty  and  possessed  of  the  most  imperturbable  assur- 
ance. Josephine  claimed  that  their  friendship  was 
purely  platonic,  that  the  young  man  was  merely  a 
pleasant  companion  who  helped  her  to  while  away 
the  time,  but  it  is  certain  that  he  was  also  the  go- 
between  between  the  Creole,  who  was  always  in 
need  of  something,  and  the  shopkeepers  who  fan- 
cied that  the  general's  wife  could  be  useful  to  them, 
and  he  was  a  lavish  contractor,  levying  gaily  upon 
whatever  was  needed  with  the  jolly  inconsequence 
of  a  soldier  foraging. 

Bonaparte  finally  became  suspicious  of  M.  Charles, 
as  he  had  of  Murat,  and  upon  some  pretext  the 
young  man  was  arrested  ;  upon  his  release  he  left 
the  army  and  returned  to  Paris,  where  Josephine 
secured  him  a  position  with  the  Compagnie  Bodin, 
and  he  made  a  large  fortune  in  the  provision  busi- 
ness. 

M.  Charles  had  been  a  companion  to  Josephine's 
taste,  some  one  from  her  beloved  Paris,  gay,  noisy, 
amusing  Paris  which  she  missed  so  much,  and  she 
needed  some  one  of  his  calibre  to  help  her  bear  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  59 

intolerable  ennui  to  which  she  was  a  victim.  "  I 
am  bored  to  death,"  she  wrote  her  aunt,  and  indeed 
she  was  ;  she  was  bored  by  the  demonstrative  affec- 
tion of  her  young  husband,  bored  at  Milan  and 
Genoa  where  she  was  received  like  a  queen,  bored 
at  Florence  where  the  Grand  Duke  welcomed  her  as 
"My  Cousin,"  at  Montebello  where  she  held  her 
court,  at  Passeriano  and  Venice,  bored  everywhere 
outside  of  Paris,  yet,  when  Bonaparte  finally  turned 
his  face  homeward,  she  did  not  accompany  him  ; 
she  had  taken  a  fancy,  so  she  said,  to  see  Rome,  and 
she  did  not  reach  the  rue  Chantereine  until  her  hus- 
band had  been  a  week  settled  in  the  house  whereon, 
at  her  orders,  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand 
francs  had  been  expended  in  furniture  and  decora- 
tions. 

Thus,  for  a  caprice,  Josephine  renounced  the 
triumphant  journey  across  Switzerland  and  Italy, 
during  which  Bonaparte  was  everywhere  greeted 
with  shouts  of  acclamation,  the  victorious  return  to 
France  by  the  side  of  the  man  with  whose  praises 
the  whole  country  was  ringing,  the  man  whose 
glorified  name  she  bore. 

Although  at  that  time  Napoleon's  ardor  had 
somewhat  abated,  his  wife  was  still  the  only  woman 
whom  he  loved,  and  he  made  a  public  confession  of 
his   affection,  saying  to  Mme.  de  Stael,   "I  adore 


t)0  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK    AND   HUSBAND. 

my  wife, "  he  never  left  her,  and  was  not  displeased 
by  the  report  that  he  was  extremely  jealous.  Jose- 
phine was  no  longer  pretty,  she  was  nearing  forty, 
and  showed  her  age,  but  in  Bonaparte's  sight  she 
had  not  changed,  and,  his  first  passion  passed,  there 
remained  so  sweet  and  tender  a  memory  of  his  first 
love  that  throughout  his  life  she  exercised  over  his 
heart  and  senses  an  immutable  influence. 

NOTE. 

A  chronicler,  whom  I  only  cite  because  in  such  matters  it  is. 
wisest  to  take  note  of  all  that  is  said,  affirms  that  on  the  morning 
when  Bonaparte  received  the  oaths  of  the  civic  guard,  he  had  in 
his  apartment  an  actress,  who  was  a  mistress  of  a  Piedmontese 
general,  and  whom  he  had  ordered  brought  there  for  his  amuse- 
ment, and  that,  the  ceremony  terminated,  he  went  on  foot  to  the 
Passage  des  Figini,  where  he  purchased  from  Manini  the  jeweller, 
feminine  ornaments  valued  at  a  hundred  and  twenty-eight  pounds. 
Another  account,  that  previous  to  the  taking  of  Milan  he  had  for 
a  mistress  the  Marquise  de  Bianchi,  a  woman  of  remarkable 
beauty,  who  had  called  upon  him  to  reclaim  twenty-five  horses 
belonging  to  her  husband  which  the  French  had  stolen.  After 
the  marquise  he  is  accredited  with  having  entertained  an  opera 
singer  named  Ricardi,  to  whom  he  presented  a  carriage  and  six 
horses  ;  after  that,  a  youthful  dancer  of  seventeen,  Mademoiselle 
Therese  Campini,  and,  lastly,  the  daughter  of  a  furrier.  That 
makes  five,  and  none  of  the  adventures,  and  I  have  carefully 
investigated  the  subject,  appear  to  be  authentic. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  61 


CHAPTER  V. 

MADAME  FOURES. 

Bonaparte  stood  on  the  deck  of  the  transport 
I'Ocean  as  she  sailed  out  of  the  harbor  of  Toulon  on 
the  29th  of  April,  1798,  and  watched  Josephine  until 
distance  hid  her  from  his  sight.  He  still  loved  her 
fondly,  if  not  with  the  burning  ardor  of  the  first 
days  of  their  married  life,  and  admired  her  as  the 
incarnation  of  grace  and  elegance,  of  all  that  was 
sweet  and  feminine,  and  as  the  first  woman  who 
Ifad  been  completely  his  own  and  rendered  him 
supremely  happv. 

It  had  been  settled  between  them  that  as  soon  as 
Egypt  was  conquered  (and  he  did  not  doubt  that  he 
should  conquer)  he  should  send  a  frigate  for  her  and 
she  should  join  him,  in  the  meanwhile  she  was  to 
go  to  the  baths  ;  but  if  Josephine  was  sincere  when 
she  promised  to  go  to  Egypt,  the  idea  of  making 
such  a  journey,  of  going  into  an  unknown  land,  soon 
became  a  bugbear  to  her,  the  old  Parisian  life  recon- 
quered her,  society  and  the  world  resumed  their 


62       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

sway,  the  attachment  she  had  formed  at  Milan  was 
hard  to  break,  and  she  lingered  in  France. 

Keports  of  her  indiscretions  reaching  Napoleon  on 
the  passage  between  Malta  and  Alexandria,  his  old 
suspicions  were  awakened,  and  he  felt  he  must  know 
the  truth  ;  so  he  called  aside  those  whom  he  judged 
to  be  his  sincerest  friends  and  least  likely  to  deceive 
him,  and,  determined  to  learn  what  had  been  said  of 
his  wife  in  Italy,  pressed  them  with  questions.  Men 
were  blunt  in  those  days  and  he  was  soon  fully  in- 
formed. 

Josephine's  life  before  he  married  her  did  not 
interest  him  and  he  asked  no  questions  about  it. 
When  he  had  written  her  from  Milan  :  "  Every- 
thing pleases  me,  even  your  errors  and  the  trying 
scene  which  preceded  our  marriage  by  about  a  fort- 
night," he  gave  the  keynote  to  his  character  and 
explained  his  comprehension  of  love.  In  his  opin- 
ion the  right  a  man  has  over  his  wife  dated  from 
the  day  they  are  wed,  and  from  the  day  when  Jose- 
phine de  Beauharnais  had  bound  herself  to  him  by 
an  oath,  accepted  his  love  and  professed  to  share  it, 
she  belonged  wholly  to  him  ;  if  she  had  deceived 
him  he  was  done  with  her. 

The  idea  of  divorce  germinated  in  the  hour  when 
his  eyes  were  unsealed  and  the  illusion  under  which 
he  had  lived  was  dispelled.  Had  Bonaparte  remained 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  63 

in  ignorance  of  Josephine's  infidelities  he  would 
doubtless  have  been  as  faithful  in  Egypt  as  he  was 
in  Italy,  but  under  the  circumstances  he  felt  under 
no  obligation  to  restrain  himself,  and  saw  no  reason 
why  he  should  not  lighten  the  tedium  of  the  hours 
by  the  distractions,  which,  a  few  months  previous, 
would  have  seemed  to  him  like  treachery  to  his  wife, 
but  which  under  the  existing  conditions  appeared 
but  natural  to  a  man  of  his  years. 

He  had  a  fancy  to  taste  of  the  far-famed  charms 
of  Oriental  women,  as  so  many  other  Europeans 
had  done,  and  a  number  were  introduced  to  him, 
but  their  obesity  was  repugnant,  for  no  one  was 
ever  more  easily  disgusted,  more  sensible  to  odors, 
or  more  impressionable  than  Bonaparte. 

He  was  more  fortunate  at  the  Egyptian  Tivoli,  a 
garden  constructed  on  the  model  of  the  Tivoli  at 
Paris  and  managed  by  a  member  of  the  old  body- 
guard, once  a  schoolmate  of  Bonaparte's  at  Brienne, 
who  had  obtained  permission  to  follow  the  army. 
Like  its  prototype,  the  Egyptian  Tivoli  had  a  club 
vith  all  kinds  of  games,  swings,  jugglers,  snake- 
charmers  and  dancers,  and  its  habitues  could  take 
an  ice  while  listening  to  the  strains  of  a  military 
band.  The  place  would  have  been  pleasant  if  fre- 
quented by  the  feminine  habitues  of  similar  European 
resorts,  but  of  European  women  there  were  few,  the 


64  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

only  ones  who  frequented  the  Tivoli  having  come 
with  the  army  to  Egypt ;  for,  in  spite  of  the  order 
that  officer's  wives  were  to  remain  behind,  a  few, 
disguised  in  male  attire,  managed  to  evade  the  scru- 
tiny of  the  sentinels  and  make  the  passage  in  the 
holds  of  the  transports ;  they  were  mostly  bold,  auda- 
cious creatures,  old  campaigners  accustomed  to  a  life 
of  adventure,  and,  like  the  wife  of  General  Verdier, 
able  to  handle  a  gun  as  well  as  their  husband. 

The  prettiest  among  these  women  was  a  little 
blonde  with  dazzling  complexion  and  white  teeth, 
by  name,  Marguerite-Pauline  Bellisle.  She  would 
have  been  attractive  anywhere  ;  in  Egypt  she  was 
simply  adorable.  Apprenticed  to  a  milliner  at  Car- 
cassonne, she  had  succeeded  in  marrying  her  em- 
ployer's nephew,  Lieutenant  Foures,  a  good-looking 
young  fellow  in  the  22d  chasseurs.  In  the  midst 
of  their  honeymoon  came  the  order  to  embark  for 
Egypt ;  the  bride  arrayed  herself  in  cavalry  uniform 
and  sneaked  aboard  the  same  vessel  which  carried 
the  groom  ;  arrived  at  Cairo  she  resumed  her  femi- 
nine habiliments  and  devoted  herself  so  exclusively 
to  her  husband  that  the  union  was  cited  as  a  model 
one. 

During  a  f§te,  given  at  Esbekieh  after  a  review 
of  the  troops,  Bonaparte's  young  aides-de-camps, 
Merlin  and  Eugene  de  Beauharnais,  caught  sight 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  65 

of  Mme.  Foures  and  admired  her  so  vehemently 
that  his  attention  was  directed  to  her,  and  he 
inquired  who  she  was  ;  that  evening  he  saw  her 
again  at  the  Tivoli,  was  introduced  and  paid  her 
marked  attention.  Afterwards,  intermediaries,  who 
are  to  be  found  everywhere,  undertook  to  smooth 
the  way  for  him. 

Whether  from  calculation  or  virtue,  it  was  some 
time  before  the  little  woman  yielded  ;  it  required 
protestations,  letters  and  rich  gifts  to  overcome  her 
scruples,  but  at  last  she  succumbed.  On  the  17th 
of  December  Lieutenant  Foures  received  an  order 
to  embark,  alone  this  time,  on  the  Chasseur  com- 
manded by  Captain  Laurens,  with  orders  to  make 
the  coast  of  Italy  and  carry  dispatches  to  the 
Directory ;  at  Paris  he  was  to  see  Lucien  and 
Joseph  Bonaparte,  and,  after  receiving  such  letters 
as  they  desired  to  send,  to  return  to  Damiette. 
He  returned  sooner  than  was  expected. 

The  day  after  the  lieutenant's  departure  Bonaparte 
gave  a  dinner  at  which  Mme.  Foures  occupied  the 
seat  of  honor.  The  host  was  most  attentive,  but  to- 
wards the  end  of  the  repast,  with  apparent  awk- 
wardness he  upset  a  carafe  of  ice- water  over  her,  and 
rising,  with  many  apologies,  led  the  way  into  an- 
other room,  under  pretext  of  assisting  her  to  re- 
arrange her  disordered  toilet.  A  chronicler  of  the 
5 


66  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

times  tells  us  that  "  they  paid  some  regard  to  ap- 
pearances, but  unfortunately  their  absence  was  so 
prolonged  that  the  guests  who  remained  at  table 
entertained  grave  doubts  as  to  the  genuineness  of 
the  accident."  They  had  still  more  cause  for  doubt 
when  a  house  adjoining  the  palace  Elfi-Bey,  the 
general's  residence,  was  hastily  furnished,  and  the 
fair  Marguerite  stalled  therein. 

Madame  Foures  was  scarcely  settled  in  her  new 
abode  when  her  husband  returned.  The  Chas- 
seur sailed  from  France  on  the  18th  of  Decem- 
ber, and  the  following  day  fell  a  prisoner  to  the 
English  man-of-war  Lion  ;  the  English,  who  were 
pretty  accurately  informed  regarding  what  was 
going  on  in  the  French  army,  were  malicious 
enough  to  send  Foures  back  to  Cairo  on  his  parole 
not  to  serve  against  them  during  the  war.  The 
lieutenant,  who  Marmont  vainly  essayed  to  detain 
at  Alexandria,  arrived  in  a  furious  temper,  and 
cruelly  did  his  wife  expiate  her  faithlessness ;  to 
escape  his  rage  she  petitioned  for  a  divorce,  which 
was  pronounced  by  a  military  justice,  and  on  the 
return  of  the  Syrian  expedition  Lieutenant  Foures 
was  again  ordered  to  return  to  France,  and  an  ex- 
press order  to  expedite  his  journey  was  addressed 
to  the  naval  commander. 

After  her  divorce,  Mme.  Foures,  who  had  resumed 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  67 

her  maiden  name  of  Bellisle,  paraded  herself  as  Bona- 
parte's favorite.  Richly  apparelled,  living  in  most 
luxurious  fashion,  entertaining  generals  and  doing 
the  honors  of  the  palace  to  some  army  women,  she 
was  to  be  seen  everywhere  ;  sometimes  driving  with 
Bonaparte,  while  the  aide-de-camp  on  duty  trotted 
by  the  side  of  the  carriage — Eugene  de  Beauharnais 
like  the  rest, — sometimes  galloping  about  in  a 
general's  uniform,  a  cocked  hat  perched  on  her 
head,  and  mounted  on  an  Arab  horse  which  had 
been  especially  broken  for  her  use.  "  Here  comes 
our  general  !"  said  the  soldiers,  while  those  ad- 
dicted to  flowery  language  nicknamed  her,  "  Cleo- 
patra." 

About  her  neck  she  habitually  wore  a  long  chain 
to  which  hung  her  lover's  miniature  ;  it  was  a 
public  liaison  at  which  no  one  manifested  any 
astonishment. 

From  the  year  1792  young  women  in  masculine 
apparel  were  to  be  found  at  all  the  headquarters  of 
the  Army  of  the  Republic,  sometimes  acting  as 
aides-de-camp,  as  did  the  demoiselles  de  Fernig,  but 
more  frequently  in  another  capacity,  like  Illyrine 
de  Morency,  Ida  Saint-Elme  and  many  others.  At 
that  epoch  a  man's  costume  was  to  be  found  in  the 
wardrobe  of  every  woman  of  easy  morals,  the 
generals'  custom  of  taking  their  mistresses,    and 


68  NAPOLEON,    LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

even  their  wives,  on  military  expeditions  was  so 
deep-rooted  that  during  the  campaigns  in  Spain, 
and  up  to  the  fall  of  the  Empire,  hardly  one  failed 
to  follow  it;  for  example,  witness  Massena  in  1810 
and  1811.  Nevertheless  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  re- 
belled against  his  duties  as  escort  to  his  stepfather's 
mistress,  and  was  excused  from  that  service,  though 
he  was  still  retained  as  aide-de-camp. 

So  deeply  enamored  was  Bonaparte  of  Mar- 
guerite Bellisle,  that  he  did  not  conceal  from  her 
his  intention  of  repudiating  Josephine  ;  and  even 
meditated  marrying  her  should  she  bear  him  a 
child,  but  as  he  laughingly  remarked  :  "  The  little 
idiot  does  not  know  enough  to  have  a  baby,"  which 
being  repeated  to  her  drew  forth  the  retort :  "  Who 
knows  if  I  am  the  idiot  ? " 

During  the  Syrian  expedition  Marguerite  remained 
at  Cairo,  and  Bonaparte  wrote  her  the  tenderest 
letters,  and  when,  after  Aboukir,  the  general  em- 
barked on  the  Murion  to  return  to  France,  he  left 
orders  that  the  ci-devant  Mme.  Foures  was  to  re- 
join him  as  soon  as  possible,  and  that  she  should 
sail  by  the  first  armed  vessel. 

General  Kleber,  however,  did  not  take  that  view  of 
the  situation.  He  had  succeeded  Bonaparte  in  com- 
mand, and  doubtless  he  regarded  La  Bellilote  as 
one  of  the  perquisites  of  the  position  ;  at  all  events 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEE   AND   HUSBAND.  69 

he  threw  obstacle  after  obstacle  in  the  way  of  her 
departure,  and  it  was  owing  to  Desgenettes  that  she 
finally  embarked  on  a  neutral  vessel,  the  America, 
in  company  with  Junot  and  some  of  the  savants 
of  the  Egyptian  expedition,  Rigel,  Lallemand  and 
Corancez,  Jr.  Unfortunately  the  America  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  English,  and  Mme.  Foures  was  not 
released  from  captivity  and  able  to  return  to  France 
until  too  late. 

When  she  reached  her  native  land  the  reconcilia- 
tion between  Bonaparte  and  Josephine  was  an  ac- 
complished fact,  and  her  lover  metamorphosed  into 
the  First  Consul  of  the  Kepublic,  a  position  which 
rendered  it  incumbent  upon  him  to  set  the  country 
an  example  of  a  dignified  and  upright  life.  It  is 
claimed  that  Bonaparte  forbade  Mme.  Foures  coming 
to  Paris  ;  if  so,  his  injunctions  were  disregarded, 
for  she  came  and  showed  herself  in  company  with 
her  friends  at  "  Les  Francais"  and  other  theatres ; 
the  Consul,  however,  firmly  refused  to  see  her,  but 
gave  her  as  much  money  as  she  demanded.  On  the 
11th  of  March,  1811,  he  presented  her  with  sixty 
thousand  francs  out  of  the  appropriation  for  theatres, 
he  bought  a  chateau  for  her  in  the  suburbs  of  Paris, 
and  arranged  a  marriage  between  her  and  M.  Henri 
de  Eanchoup,  an  emigre,  an  ex-infantry  officer,  and 
the  scion  of  a  good  Auvergne  family  ;  the  marriage 


70  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

took  place  at  Bellevile  in  1800,  and  the  husband 
received  as  a  wedding- present  the  vice- consulship  of 
Santander,  from  which  he  was  promoted,  in  1810, 
to  the  consulate  of  Gothenburg. 

In  spite  of  her  husband's  duties,  Mme.  de  Ran- 
choup  appears  to  have  been  seldom  absent  from 
Paris  ;  she  was  there  in  1811,  and  still  there  in  1813. 
In  1814  she  was  well  known  in  society  and  visited 
the  Baroness  Girard,  the  Countess  de  Lucy,  and  the 
Baroness  Brayer  ;  she  went  in  for  literary  work,  and 
had  published  by  Delaunay  a  two-volumed  novel  en- 
titled "  Lord  Wentworth,"  The  romance  of  her  life, 
however,  is  far  more  interesting.  She  painted  also, 
and  was  not  without  talent  if  one  can  judge  by  the 
charming  portrait  she  made  of  herself,  wherein  she 
appears  pulling  the  leaves  from  a  daisy  ;  it  was  a 
singular  idea  to  thus  represent  herself  essaying  to 
read  her  fate  by  the  aid  of  a  flower.  Alas,  for  her  ! 
while  searching  for  "  passionately  "  she  found  u  not 
at  all."  The  portrait  represents  a  charming  woman 
with  a  vivacious  face  under  a  mass  of  short,  babyish 
curls,  slight,  graceful  figure  and  really  beautiful 
arms,  and  it  atones  in  gracefulness  for  what  it  lacks 
in  technique. 

Towards  1816  Mme.  de  Ranchoup  came  to  an 
open  rupture  with  her  husband,  sold  her  furniture, 
which  was  valuable,  and  departed  for  Brazil  in 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  71 

company  with  an  ex-officer  of  the  Guard,  Jean- 
Auguste  Bellard.  It  was  rumored  in  Paris  that, 
having  realized  on  her  property,  she  proposed  to  re- 
new her  relations  with  Napoleon  and  aid  him  to 
escape  from  St.  Helena.  She  was  not  thinking  of 
such  a  thing,  having  grown  to  detest  the  Emperor, 
and  to  affect  royalistic  opinions.  When  Mme. 
d'Abrantes  published  her  memoirs  she  mentioned 
this  rumor,  praising  Mme.  de  Ranchoup  highly  for 
her  loyalty  and  devotion  ;  but  the  latter  protested, 
as  such  a  statement  rendered  her  a  suspicious  char- 
acter in  the  eye  of  the  police,  who,  knowing  her 
to  be  an  old  friend  of  Bonaparte's,  were  inclined 
to  keep  an  eye  upon  her  and  who  watched  her 
narrowly  when  she  returned  from  Brazil  with 
Bellard  in  1825. 

In  reality  her  journeys  between  Brazil  and  France 
were  taken  simply  to  secure  to  herself  a  compe- 
tency ;  she  took  out  merchandise,  which  she  ex- 
changed for  rosewood  and  mahogany,  these  she 
brought  back  and  sold  in  France,  returning  again  to 
South  America  with  furniture ;  oscillating  in  this 
fashion  between  the  Old  World  and  the  New  until 
1837,  when  she  settled  in  Paris.  She  continued  writ- 
ing, and  published  another  novel,  "  Une  Chatelaine 
du  XII.  Siecle,"  and  installed  in  a  modest  little 
apartment  in  the  rue  de  la  Ville-PEveque,  surrounded 


72  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND. 

by  monkeys  and  birds,  she  led  a  cheerful,  contented 
existence  until  the  18th  of  March,  1869,  when  she 
died  at  the  age  of  92  years.  She  retained  all  her 
faculties  unimpaired  to  the  last ;  she  wrote,  played  on 
the  harp,  and  painted  ;  she  bought  pictures,  kept  up 
her  friendships  with  the  women  she  had  known  in 
other  days  and  even  made  new  friends,  among 
others,  Mile.  Rosa  Bonheur. 

Mme.  de  Ranchoup's  taste  in  art  is  discerned  by 
the  numerous  pictures  with  which  she  endowed 
the  museum  at  Blois  (to  which  city  she  was  at- 
tracted by  her  friend  the  Baroness  de  Wimpffen). 
Many  of  these  pictures  which  claim  to  be  Raphael's, 
Titian's,  Leonard's,  and  Boucher's,  are  really  only 
copies  ;  some  canvases  are  attributed  to  Prud'hon, 
others  to  Reynolds,  Terburg,  Jean  Meel,  Carlo 
Maratti,  Jeaurat,  and  there  are  also  two  modern 
pictures,  one  a  Rosa  Bonheur,  the  other  a  Compte- 
Calix ;  infant  Jesus',  Bohemians,  Venuses,  Cupids, 
Psyches  and  Hermits,  abound  ;  but  not  one  recalls 
the  days  in  Egypt,  the  palace  of  Elfi-Bey,  and  the 
man  who  played  the  most  important  role  in  her  life. 
Before  she  died,  Mme.  de  Ranchoup,  or  the  Countess 
de  Ranchoup,  as  she  preferred  to  be  called,  burnt 
every  letter  which  had  been  written  her  by  Bonaparte. 
It  appears  as  though  she  wished  to  annihilate  every 
memory  of  the  love  to  which  she  owes  her  place  in 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  73 

history ;  that  youthful,  sensual  love  which  had, 
nevertheless,  an  ingenuous  side,  and  in  which,  above 
all,  we  see  how  imperious  was  Napoleon's  desire  for 
a  child  ;  a  child  of  his  own,  to  whom  he  could  trans- 
mit his  name  and  his  glory. 


74  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND   HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

RECONCILIATION. 

Josephine  was  dining  at  the  Luxemburg,  a 
guest  of  Gohier,  president  of  the  Directory,  when 
the  news  that  Bonaparte  had  landed  at  Frejus  was 
announced  :  it  was  totally  unexpected  and  almost 
overwhelmed  her,  for  she  had  well-nigh  forgotten 
that  he  existed,  had  seemingly  overlooked  the  possi- 
bility of  his  return,  and  arranged  her  life  to  please 
herself,  her  conduct  closely  resembling  that  of  a 
widow  no  longer  inconsolable. 

While  in  Egypt  the  husband  meditated  a  divorce, 
in  France  the  wife  was  making  her  repudiation 
imperative  ;  having  broken  off  her  relations  with 
Barras,  whose  influence  was  declining  and  whose 
power  was  weakening,  she  did  everything  to  ingrati- 
ate herself  with  the  Gohiers,  husband  and  wife, 
from  the  moment  he  held  an  important  government 
position. 

G-ohier  was  a  native  of  Rennes,  belonged  to  the 
middle-class,  and  had  been  the  minister  of  Justice 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND.  75 

during  the  Reign  of  Terror  ;  he  it  was  who  drew  up 
the  legal  formulas  which  Fouquier-Tinville  enforced  ; 
he  was  the  casuiste  of  the  guillotine.  Nothing 
gives  an  air  of  austerity  like  the  hunt  after  judicial 
expediencies,  it  is  the  indispensable  mask  which 
hides  the  law's  prevarications,  and  Gohier  affected 
a  Spartan-like  integrity  and  sternness. 

Because  of  his  austerity  he  was  elected  a  member 
of  the  Directory,  and  because  of  it  also  he  made  a 
recruit  of  Josephine,  who  confided  to  him  her  pas- 
sion for  M.  Charles,  and  was  counselled  by  him  to 
apply  for  a  divorce  in  order  to  espouse  her  lover. 

Josephine,  though  tempted,  hesitated  ;  but  in  the 
meantime,  because  of  M.  Charles,  she  quarrelled 
with  her  brothers-in-law,  Joseph  and  Lucien,  who 
were  the  most  violent  adversaries  of  the  Gohier 
party,  and  inspired  their  life-long  enmity. 

On  the  Bonaparte  side  were  all  Napoleon's  friends, 
those  who  waited,  hoped  and  counted  upon  his  re- 
turn to  re-organize  France,  while  the  Gohier  party 
comprised  his  bitterest  enemies,  Bernadotte,  Cham- 
pionnet,  Jourdin,  Moulin,  all  the  political  generals. 
The  Jacobins  had  pushed  forward  Gohier,  who  was 
a  republican  and  a  civilian,  solely  that  they  might 
encompass  the  downfall  of  the  conqueror.  The 
more  hostile  Gohier  was  to  Bonaparte,  the  better  it 
suited  Josephine,  and,  in  order  to  secure  to  herself 


* 


76  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

the  protection  and  support  of  the  Gohier  family,  she 
schemed  to  marry  her  daughter  Hortense  to  their 
son  ;  planning  to  sacrifice  the  poor  child  (whose 
happiness  was  always  a  secondary  consideration)  if 
it  proved  to  her  interest  to  do  so. 

This  scheme  was  progressing  finely,  and  they 
were  dining  en  famille,  when  the  startling  news 
that  Bonaparte  had  disembarked  and  was  on  the 
way  to  Paris  came  upon  them  like  a  thunderbolt. 

It  was  clear  that  he  would  not  have  come  in  so 
secret  and  unheralded  a  fashion  save  for  grave 
reasons  ;  Gohier  realized  that  a  crisis  was  at  hand, 
and  Josephine  that  she  had  not  a  moment  to  lose  if 
she  would  save  herself,  for,  seeing  a  struggle  for 
supremacy,  she  meant  to  be  on  the  winning  side. 
Gohier  might  yet  be  a  useful  friend,  but  the  most 
important  thing  was  to  regain  her  empire  over 
Bonaparte.  With  this  end  in  view,  she  instantly 
determined  to  go  to  meet  him,  and  announced  that 
determination  to  Gohier.  "Do  not  fear,  President," 
she  said,  as  she  took  leave  of  him,  "that  Bonaparte 
comes  with  designs  fatal  to  liberty,  but  it  is  wiser 
to  prevent  traitors  from  gaining  his  ear." 

She  hurriedly  ordered  post-horses  and  set  out ; 
this  time  without  Louise  Compoint,  or  Fortune ; 
and,  unincumbered  by  baggage,  flew  to  meet  her  hus- 
band.    Her  plan  was  to  throw  herself  into    his 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  77 


arms,  rekindle  his  burnt-out  passion,  and  win  him 
back,  and  by  thus  avoiding  all  explanations  return 
with  him  to  Paris,  and  be  at  his  side  to  receive  the 
chagrined  Bonapartes  who  would  again  hesitate  to 
speak,  or,  if  they  dared,  would  find  they  spoke  to 
deaf  ears. 

While  Josephine  was  urging  on  her  postilions, 
and  eagerly  scanning  the  horizon  for  the  travelling- 
carriage  she  so  wished  to  meet,  Bonaparte  arrived 
in  Paris  by  the  Bourbonnais  route ;  learning  this 
she  hastily  retraced  her  steps,  but  she  had  lost  three 
days,  during  which  Bonaparte  had  interrogated  his 
brothers,  sisters  and  mother,  who  confirmed  the 
gossip  he  had  heard  in  Egypt,  and  cemented  his 
determination  to  obtain  a  divorce.  There  was  no 
longer  any  doubt  as  to  what  Josephine's  conduct 
had  been  in  Milan,  or  of  the  life  she  had  led  dur- 
ing the  past  seventeen  months.  It  seems  that  the 
Bonapartes,  either  out  of  regard  for  her  or  their 
brother,  did  not  tell  all  they  knew,  possibly  they 
did  not  know  everything  ;  however,  what  they  said 
sufficed ;  Napoleon's  decision  was  taken,  and  the 
whole  family  approved  it. 

In  vain  did  the  friends,  to  whom  he  recounted  his 
troubles,  remonstrate  and  point  out  to  him  that  the 
acclamations  with  which  the  people  had  greeted  his 
return  proved  that  they  looked   to  him  for  their 


78       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

salvation,  that  they  did  not  expect  a  scandal,  that 
he  must  wait  until  he  had  done  his  duty  to  his 
country  before  he  dismissed  his  wife,  that  to  adver- 
tise his  domestic  troubles  was  to  lay  himself  open 
to  ridicule,  and  that  in  France  ridicule  kills  ;  to  all 
Bonaparte  turned  a  deaf  ear. 

"She  must  go,"  he  said,  "no  matter  what  people 
say  ;  they  will  gossip  for  a  day  or  two,  then  all  will 
be  forgotten."  No  consideration  could  soften  or 
touch  him,  no  interests  were  great  enough  to  over- 
throw his  just  indignation.  To  avoid  a  meeting 
wherein  he  feared  he  might  be  moved  to  pity — for 
he  realized  the  hold  Josephine  had  over  his  senses, 
and  would  not  trust  himself  to  meet  her — he  de- 
posited with  the  concierge  her  jewels  and  effects ; 
he  then  made  an  appointment  with  his  brothers  for 
the  following  morning,  intending  to  settle  the  last 
formalities,  and  alone  in  his  room  on  the  first  floor 
of  the  house,  awaited  their  arrival. 

Josephine,  half  frantic,  at  last  reached  the  rue 
Chantereine  ;  it  was  a  desperate  game  she  was  about 
to  play,  and  her  chance  of  success  was  poor,  for  her 
cause  was  already  half  lost. 

During  her  journey,  for  perhaps  the  first  time  in 
her  life,  Josephine  had  reflected  upon  her  position  and 
the  horror  of  it  had  burst  upon  her,  forcing  her  to 
see  that  if  she  did  not  succeed  in  seeing,  and  re-con- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  79 


quering  her  husband,  she  had  nowhere  to  go.  Men 
like  M.  Charles  were  well  enough  for  a  pastime,  but 
how  could  she  have  been  so  stupid  as  to  permit  her 
relations  with  him  to  have  become  a  scandal  and 
for  his  sake  to  jeopardize  her  best  interests  ?  That, 
the  affair  with  Barras  and  others,  the  Bonapartes 
antagonized,  debts  everywhere — what  was  to  be- 
come of  her  ?  Her  head  was  in  a  whirl.  Not  realiz- 
ing the  value  of  money,  she  had  bought  continually 
on  credit,  fancying  that  all  her  bills  were  settled 
when  she  had  only  paid  something  on  account,  and 
she  dragged  after  her  then,  as  she  did  during  the  Em- 
pire and  up  to  her  last  hour,  a  train  of  creditors  who 
always  gave  her  fresh  occasion  for  expense  and  whose 
bills  she  increased  without  a  thought  of  the  day  of 
reckoning.  When  payment  became  due  she  wept 
and  sobbed,  lost  her  head,  resorted  to  every  possible 
expedient,  called  on  God  and  the  devil  to  help  her, 
and,  when  she  succeeded  in  gaining  a  little  time, 
thought  herself  saved.  This  was  how  she  stood  at 
that  moment ;  to  her  tradespeople  alone,  it  is  said,  she 
owed  twelve  hundred  thousand  francs,  and  it  is  not 
unlikely,  for  that  was  the  usual  sum  of  her  indebted- 
ness. She  had  purchased  in  the  canton  of  Glabbaix, 
in  the  department  of  Dyle,  national  bonds  to  the 
amount  of  one  million,  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
five  thousand  francs,  and  still  owed  two-thirds  on 


80       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

it ;  the  other  third  was  to  have  been  furnished 
by  her  aunt,  Mme.  Renaudin,  then  become  Mme.  de 
Beauharnais,  but  she  had  not  a  penny  and  could  not 
fulfill  her  promise.  She  had  bought  of  citizen 
Lecoulteux  the  lands  and  demesne  of  Malmaison 
for  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  francs  ; 
thirty -seven  thousand,  five  hundred  and  sixteen 
francs  for  furniture,  utensils  and  provisions,  and 
nine  thousand,  one  hundred  and  ten  francs  for 
rights  and  privileges  ;  on  this  she  had  paid  for  the 
furniture  with  "  the  price  of  diamonds  and  jewels 
belonging  to  her  : "  but  the  rest  was  demandable, 
and  who  was  to  pay  it  ? 

Josephine  knew  she  might  claim  that  the  general, 
who  had  visited  Malmaison  before  his  departure 
for  Egypt,  had  offered  two  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  francs  for  the  property,  and  that  that 
was  about  the  sum  which  she  had  agreed  to  pay 
for  it ;  but  after  having  seen  Malmaison  Bona- 
parte had  seen  Ris,  and  had  favorably  considered  its 
purchase,  and  finally  his  choice  had  fallen  upon  a 
place  in  Bourgogne  ;  moreover,  he  had  not  given 
her  power  of  attorney.  His  brother  Joseph  was  his 
business  manager  ;  it  was  through  him  that  Jose- 
phine received  her  annual  allowance  of  forty  thou- 
sand francs,  and  to  Joseph  alone  had  Napoleon  com- 
municated his  projects.     The  latter  had  advanced 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND.  81 

fifteen  thousand  francs  on  account  to  Lecoulteux  ; 
the  receipt,  however,  which  bore  the  date  of  17th 
Messidor,  year  VII.,  was  in  the  general's  name,  and 
Josephine  therefore  still  owed  fifteen  thousand 
francs,  because  she  had  stipulated  at  marriage  for 
the  separation  of  property. 

Nothing  belonged  to  her  ;  not  even  the  hotel  in 
the  rue  de  la  Victoire,  for  it  had  been  bought  and 
paid  for  by  Bonaparte  ;  all  that  she  owned  were  the 
spoils  of  her  Italian  campaign,  which  she  was  pleased 
to  display,  and  which  one  of  her  contemporaries  tells 
us  was  worthy  to  have  figured  in  "  A  Thousand  and 
One  Nights. "  She  still  possessed  pictures,  statues 
and  antiques,  but  what  were  they  against  what  she 
owed  ;  and  what  did  they  amount  to  in  comparison 
to  what  she  was  losing  ? 

Thus  Josephine  was  again  in  desperate  straits  and 
no  longer  at  an  age  when  she  could  hope  to  repair 
her  fortunes  by  a  lucky  marriage.  The  years  had 
left  their  traces,  her  figure  remained  supple  and 
graceful,  but  her  face  had  faded  ;  a  Creole,  married 
at  sixteen,  matured  at  twelve  (for  Tercier  claims  to 
have  courted  her  in  1776)  she  was  much  older  than 
a  northern  woman  at  the  same  period  of  .life,  and, 
looking  the  situation  in  the  face,  she  clung  to  the 
hope  that  her  husband  would  see  her  and  be  touched. 

She  went  to  the  rue  Chantereine,  forced  her  way 


82  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

into  the  house  and  to  the  door  of  the  room  in  which 
Bonaparte  had  intrenched  himself  ;  but  she  knocked 
and  implored  vainly  ;  finally  she  threw  herself  upon 
her  knees,  and  the  sounds  of  her  sobs  and  lamenta- 
tions rang  through  the  house.  She  remained  there 
for  hours  endeavoring  to  make  him  open  the  door  ; 
at  last,  utterly  discouraged  and  exhausted,  she  was 
about  to  depart  when  her  maid,  Agathe  Eible, 
thought  of  an  expedient  and  begging  her  mistress 
to  stop  where  she  was,  rushed  for  Eugene  and  Hor- 
tense,  and  returning  with  them  had  them  kneel  be- 
side their  mother  and  join  their  supplications  with 
hers ;  at  last  the  door  opened,  Bonaparte  appeared, 
and  without  uttering  a  word  held  out  his  arms  to 
his  wife  ;  his  eyes  were  suffused  with  tears,  and  his 
face  bore  evidence  of  the  terrible  strain  he  had 
undergone. 

It  was  no  half  pardon  which  was  extended 
/to  Josephine,  but  forgiveness,  utter  and  complete. 
Bonaparte  had  the  wonderful  faculty  of  forgetful- 
ness,  and  once  he  had  forgiven  a  fault  and  renewed 
his  confidence,  was  able  to  erase  from  the  tablets  of 
his  mind  the  faults  or  crimes  which  it  had  pleased 
him  to  condone,  so  that  it  was  as  though  they  had 
never  been  committed  ;  not  only  did  he  forgive  his 
wife,  but,  more  wonderful,  he  ignored  her  accom- 
plices ;  he  never  deprived  one  of  them  of  life  or 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND    HUSBAND.  83 

liberty,  did  nothing  to  impede  their  success ;  never- 
theless, when,  by  chance,  he  encountered  certain  of 
them  he  became  suddenly  extremely  pale.  He  ar- 
gued that  those  men  were  not  to  blame,  but  that  the 
fault  was  his,  for  he  had  not  taken  good  care  of  his 
wife,  that  she  had  not  been  properly  guarded,  but 
left  too  long  alone  and  unprotected,  and  so  another 
had  been  able  to  penetrate  into  his  harem.  It  was 
natural,  the  necessity  of  sex  ordered  that  man  should 
be  insistent,  that  woman  should  succumb  ;  it  was 
the  law  of  nature.  Bonaparte  reasoned  that  if  the 
erring  wife  was  no  longer  beloved,  she  should  be  re- 
pudiated ;  if  she  was  still  dear,  the  only  thing  to  do 
was  to  take  her  back  ;  reproaches  were  senseless. 
Before  an  accomplished  fact  Bonaparte  yielded,  he 
accepted  things  as  they  were  and  people  as  he  found 
them,  and  he  did  not  exact  of  women  a  virginity 
which  they  did  not  possess.  This  is  less  French  than 
Oriental  in  his  nature,  but  so  it  was.  Knowing,  or 
fancying  that  he  did,  what  to  believe  regarding 
the  morality  and  virtue  of  women,  convinced  that 
marital  security  could  be  ensured  only  by  watchful- 
ness, he  determined  to  take  his  precautions  and  to 
make  it  a  rule  that  no  man,  under  whatever  pretext, 
was  to  remain  alone  with  his  wife,  and  to  keep  her 
constantly  under  surveillance.  If  this  rule  was  not 
strictly  adhered  to  with  Josephine  it  was  because  he 


84  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

no  longer  hoped  for  offspring,  and  we  shall  see  later 
how  he  managed  with  his  second  wife. 

Josephine,  triumphed  over  the  Bonapartes,  who 
having  deplored  the  marriage,  had  desired,  schemed 
for,  and  almost  achieved  a  rupture.  She  made  Na- 
poleon contribute  to  her  triumph,  for  on  the  follow- 
ing morning,  when  Lucien,  the  most  ardent  advo- 
cate of  the  divorce,  called  at  an  early  hour  in  obedi- 
ence to  his  brother's  summons,  he  was  ushered  into 
Josephine's  bed-chamber,  where  Napoleon  was  still 
in  bed.  The  family  realized  that,  having  pardoned 
so  much,  Bonaparte  would  not  wrangle  over  a  ques- 
tion of  money,  and  that  it  was  useless  to  talk  of  his 
wife's  debts,  so  for  a  time  they  subsided. 

On  the  21st  of  November  he  paid  the  one  million, 
one  hundred  and  ninety-five  thousand  francs  due  on 
the  national  bonds  of  the  department  of  Dyle,  later 
they  served  as  a  dowry  for  Marie- Adelaide,  com- 
monly called  Adele,  the  natural  daughter  of  M. 
de  Beauharnais,  for  whom  Josephine  arranged  a 
marriage  with  Francois-Michel-Auguste  Lecomte, 
captain  of  infantry,  and  appointed  collector  at 
Sarlat  immediately  after  the  marriage.  Napoleon 
also  paid  what  was  still  owing  on  Malmaison,  a 
bagatelle  of  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand 
francs,  and  settled  the  tradespeople's  accounts, 
amounting  to  one  million,  two  hundred  thousand 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  85 


francs  ;  these  he  took  the  trouble  to  investigate,  and 
it  repaid  him,  for  by  deducting  charges  for  goods 
which  had  never  been  delivered  and  righting  over- 
charges he  reduced  the  sum  exactly  one-half. 

Josephine  had  cause  for  reflection  ;  a  husband  who 
would  thus  pay  debts  to  the  amount  of  two  million 
francs  was  a  protector  such  as  is  not  often  found, 
and  certainly  one  for  whom  a  woman  could  well 
afford  to  make  some  sacrifices  ;  she  did  so,  and  her 
apparent  conduct  up  to  the  moment  of  her  divorce 
gave  her  enemies  no  cause  for  gossip  ;  she  herself 
said  that  she  was  too  afraid  of  losing  her  position 
to  be  indiscreet.  She  proved  her  gratitude  to  the 
Gohiers,  for  on  the  evening  of  the  17th  of  Novem- 
ber she  sent  them  an  invitation  to  breakfast  with 
the  First  Consul  and  herself  on  the  following  day, 
and,  Gohier  declining,  she  urged  his  wife  to  press 
upon  him  the  acceptance  of  an  important  position 
under  the  new  government.  Gohier,  always  austere, 
indignantly  refused  ;  but  when,  after  pouting  for 
two  years,  he  solicited  the  First  Consul's  favor,  it 
was  Josephine  who  obtained  for  him  the  position  of 
commissary- general  at  Amsterdam,  where  he  was 
so  well  contented  that  he  remained  for  ten  years, 
and  would  doubtless  have  passed  the  rest  of  his  life 
if,  in  1810,  the  post  had  not  been  abolished  ;  it  is 
said  that  then  he  refused  to  go  to  New  York,  but 


86  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

he  later  accepted  a  pension  which  was  paid  him 
during  the  restoration  ;  nevertheless,  he  was  a  good 
republican  to  the  end  of  his  days  and  stipulated  for 
a  civil  interment 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  87 


CHAPTER  VH. 

LA  GRASSINI. 

Bonaparte  had  been  able  to  forgive  and  forget,  but 
he  could  not,  in  1799,  rekindle  the  passion  he  had  felt 
for  Josephine  in  his  early  manhood  when,  inexpe- 
rienced in  love  or  life,  he  had  been  intoxicated  by  the 
possession  of  a  woman  of  rank.  With  Mme.  Foures 
he  had  tasted  the  charm  and  freshness  of  budding 
womanhood,  and  the  comparison  forced  itself  upon 
his  memory ;  he  had  enjoyed  the  change,  and  had 
no  longer  either  the  desire,  or  the  will  to  remain  a 
faithful  husband. 

The  relations  which  he  wished  Josephine  to  bear 
him  in  the  future  were  rather  those  of  a  friend  and 
confidante  than  a  wife ;  he  wished  for  a  wise  friend 
to  whom,  when  in  an  expansive  mood,  he  could  tell 
some  of  the  thoughts  which  agitated  him,  from 
whom  he  could  seek  advice  regarding  a  society  which 
he  had  had  no  time  to  study,  and  for  a  tender  nurse 
who,  should  illness  befall  him.  would  give  him 
almost  maternal  care,  who  would  listen  to,  condole 


88  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

with,  and  coddle  him  ;  upon  whose  bosom  he  could 
lay  his  aching  head  and  be  comforted  as  if  he  were 
a  child.  He  wished  her  to  be  mistress  as  well  as 
friend,  a  mistress  with  whom  he  need  be  under  no 
restraint,  who  without  apparent  ennui  would  accept 
all  his  moods,  cheer  his  melancholy  or  share  his 
pleasures  ;  one  who  would  always  be  ready  for  a 
journey,  who  would  wait  for  but  never  keep  him 
waiting,  who,  while  not  sharing  his  feverish  activity 
would  sympathize  with  all  his  undertakings  ;  who 
would  drive  with  him  behind  the  four  horses  he 
delighted  to  handle,  follow  his  hunting  expeditions, 
accompany  him  to  the  theatre,  have  a  smile  always 
on  her  lips  and  a  gentle  answer  at  her  tongue's 
end. 

For  Josephine  he  reserved  a  special  place  in  his 
political  plans ;  France,  which  he  planned  to  reor- 
ganize, lacked,  according  to  him,  two  of  its  primary 
elements,  the  nobility  and  the  clergy  ;  he  believed 
that  he  could  rally  the  latter,  and  counted  upon  his 
wife  to  draw  the  former.  Not  taking  into  account 
the  mysterious  hierarchy  to  which  the  old  society  of 
France  had  submitted,  the  invisible  lines  which  had 
divided  it  into  diverse  coteries,  and  the  impassable 
gulf  which  separated  them,  he  viewed  it  as  a  whole. 
Josephine,  he  thought,  had  been  of  it,  and  could 
draw  it  back  to  him  ;  she  would  be  one  with  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.        8& 

Emigres,  with  the  people  of  the  old  court  and  the 
nobility,  with  all  those  who  belonged  to  the  old 
regime,  a  natural  intermediary  between  himself  and 
them.  Josephine  could  dispense  benefits,  distribute 
favors,  repair  injustices  ;  little  by  little  she  could 
draw  from  the  camp  of  the  enemy  those  whom 
he  wished  to  see  re-enter  the  country  ;  later  she 
would  serve  as  a  link  between  what  remained 
of  the  old  regime  and  the  new  one  he  was  build- 
ing up. 

Certainly,  it  was  a  fine  and  cleverly  conceived  role, 
and  Josephine  was  apparently  well  qualified  to  play 
it ;  she  had  the  necessary  ease,  elegance  and  grace 
of  manner,  possessed  the  happy  faculty  of  speaking 
the  right  word  in  the  right  place,  was  exceptionally 
graceful  and  tactful  in  proffering  a  gift,  and  had  a 
charming  fashion  of  receiving  people  ;  she  was  pos-  U 
sessed  also  of  wonderful  tact  in  address,  which  en- 
abled her  to  approach  people  of  all  ranks  and  appear 
at  ease  in  all  company  ;  what  she  lacked  were  those 
relations  with  the  nobility  upon  which  Bonaparte 
counted  ;  those  she  had  formed  since  the  revolution 
would  not  serve  his  purpose,  but  would  indeed  have 
been  injurious  to  the  new  government  had  not  the 
First  Consul  from  the  first  signified  his  intention  of 
sundering  them. 

In  the  beginning  Josephine  found  herself  isolated, 


90       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

but,  in  proportion  as  Bonaparte  rose,  obstacles  fell 
away,  social  distinctions  melted  before  him,  and 
ambitions  woke.  In  foreign  lands  and  in  France 
alike  people  set  their  wits  about  to  discover,  if  by 
any  lucky  chance,  they  were  even  distantly  connected 
with  either  the  Beauharnais  or  Tascher  families  ; 
they  inquired  into  remote  alliances  and  distant  kin- 
ships until  then  unacknowledged,  had  recourse  to 
inferiors  and  old  family  servants  for  information, 
and  ere  long  a  current  set  in  which  swept  all  the  old 
titled,  office-seeking,  soliciting  sycophants  either 
towards  the  yellow  salon  of  the  Tuileries  or  the 
stucco  drawing-room  at  Malmaison. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  this  state  of  affairs 
was  due  to  Josephine,  that  it  manifested  itself 
because  she  was  born  a  Tascher  and  married  a  Beau- 
harnais ;  it  existed  solely  because  she  was  Mme. 
Bonaparte  ;  people  flocked  around  her  because  she 
was  close  to  the  master,  the  satellite  of  the  planet 
from  which  they  hoped  for  light,  and  they  would 
have  swarmed  to  toady  her  just  the  same  no  matter 
what  her  name,  origin  or  past  had  been.  Never- 
theless, Josephine,  perhaps  sincerely,  believed  herself 
an  important  factor  in  the  movement,  and  strove  to 
impress  Bonaparte  with  the  invaluable  service  she 
rendered  him,  and,  strange  to  relate,  she  succeeded 
in  convincing,  him  ;  as  he  firmly  believed  that  he 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  91 

had  conquered  the  clergy,  he  could  easily  believe 
that  his  wife  had  won  the  nobility. 

What  woman  would  not  be  proud  to  be  raised  to 
such  a  position,  who  would  not  have  been  satisfied 
with  missions  so  diverse  and  so  great  ?  Had  not  the 
Consul  the  right  to  think  that  Josephine,  with  the 
memory  of  her  infidelities  and  of  all  that  had  been 
forgiven  her  before  her  eyes,  realizing  the  disparity 
in  their  ages  and  remembering  the  weaknesses  to 
which  she  herself  had  yielded,  would  let  pass  amours 
which  could  neither  detract  from  her  position  nor 
from  her  husband's  affection,  and  that  from  fear 
lest  Bonaparte  be  involved  in  a  scandal  and  realizing 
what  was  due  their  position,  she  would  always  be 
extremely  complaisant  ? 

Josephine,  unfortunately,  failed  to  see  matters  in 
this  light ;  not  because  she  had  become  enamored  of 
her  husband's  physical  charms,  nor  because  gratitude 
and  admiration  of  his  character  had  roused  in  her 
a  love  so  profound  that  it  rendered  her  jealous,  but 
because  she  thought  of  her  own  interests,  of  her 
position.  She  reasoned  that  if  Bonaparte  detached 
himself  from  her  physically  he  would  end  by  divorc- 
ing her,  and  she  lived  in  a  state  of  perpetual  appre- 
hension ;  she  watched  him,  and  debased  herself  to 
set  hired  spies  upon  his  track  ;  she  bored  him  with 
scenes,    tears  and  hysterics,   made  a  confidant   of 


92'  NAPOLEON,  LOVE!!    AND    HUSBAND. 

every  one  who  would  listen  to  her,  and,  in  default  of 
realities,  imagined  events  which  she  recounted  as 
facts,  related  incidents  she  would  assert  she  had 
seen,  and  to  the  truth  of  which  she  would  swear  if 
needful. 

The  Consul's  first  gallantries,  however,  were  not 
very  serious.  A  day  or  two  after  his  triumphal  en- 
try into  Milan,  the  14th  or  15th  Prairial,  a  concert  was 
improvised,  where,  for  his  benefit,  Italy's  greatest 
artists,  Marchesi  and  Grassini,  sang.  The  latter  was 
twenty-seven  years  of  age  (for  she  was  born  at 
Varese  in  1773),  and  she  was  no  longer  in  appearance 
what  she  had  been  two  years  previous  when,  enthu- 
siastically infatuated  by  Bonaparte,  she  had  essayed 
to  attract  his  attention  and  win  him  from  Josephine. 
She  was  still  handsome,  but  it  was  a  style  of  beauty 
commonly  seen  in  the  streets  of  Italy  ;  her  figure 
was  already  over-developed,  her  face  with  its  large 
features  and  black  eyebrows,  framed  in  thick  black 
hair,  looked  a  trifle  heavy ;  her  dark  flashing  eyes 
and  swarthy  skin  gave  her  the  appearance  of  a 
woman  of  amorous  temperament,  which,  it  appears, 
1/  was  deceptive.  She  had  no  end  of  lovers,  not  from 
sordid  motives,  for  she  was  not  mercenary,  butx 
resulting  from  mutual  contempt  and  weariness  ; 
there  was  not  one  of  them  whom  she  had  not  pro- 
claimed an  angel  at  the  beginning  of  the  intimacy, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  93 

but  her  honeymoons  waned  ere  they  had  passed  the 
first  quarter. 

Although  Grrassini's  physical  beauty  was  already 
on  the  decline,  her  artistic  career  was  at  its  height ; 
she  was  not  a  great  musician,  nor  deeply  versed  in 
the  principles  of  her  art,  but  she  was  art  itself  ;  her 
contralto  voice,  always  the  most  sympathetic  of 
voices,  was  pure  and  smooth  throughout  its  entire 
register.  Hearing  her,  one  listened  not  only  to  a 
great  singer  but  a  muse  ;  no  one  phrased  as  she  did, 
no  one  interpreted  so  understandingly  grand  opera 
(in  opera  bouffe  she  was  wretched),  no  one  deployed 
such  amplitude  of  voice,  such  depth  of  expression 
in  tragic  roles,  or  could  so  sway  an  audience. 

Music  was  the  only  one  of  all  the  arts — above  all, 
vocal  music — for  which  Bonaparte  had  a  particular 
taste  ;  the  rest  he  protected  from  policy,  because  he 
considered  it  incumbent  upon  his  position  and  wished 
his  name  handed  down  to  posterity  as  a  patron  of 
the  arts  ;  music  alone  he  thoroughly  appreciated, 
enjoyed  and  loved  for  itself  and  the  pleasurable  sen- 
sations it  evoked  ;  music  calmed  his  nerves,  charmed 
away  melancholy,  warmed  his  heart  and  set  him 
a- dreaming.  It  matters  little  that  he  sung  false,  did 
not  know  a  note  and  could  not  carry  an  air,  he  was 
so  moved  by  music  that  he  was  carried  out  of  him- 
self, and  that  proves  a  higher  appreciation  of  it. 


94  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

than  is  felt  by  many  claiming  to  be  musicians.  He 
valued  fine  singing  so  highly  that  he  decorated 
the  soprano  Crescentini  with  the  order  of  the  Iron 
Crown. 

In  Grassini,  it  was  less  the  woman  than  the  song- 
stress that  captivated  him.  For  two  years  Bona- 
parte had  dwelt  in  her  thoughts  and  her  resistance 
was  naturally  not  protracted.  The  day  after  the 
concert  she  breakfasted  at  the  Consul's  apartment, 
Berthier  making  a  third,  and  it  was  settled  that  she 
should  precede  Bonaparte  to  Paris,  where  she  should 
fill  an  engagement  at  the  "  Theatre  de  la  Eepub- 
lique  et  des  Arts,"  and  this  arrangement  was  re- 
counted in  the  fourth  bulletin  of  the  army  in  Italy  ; 
doubtless  with  the  view  of  disarming  Josephine's 
umbrage  at  the  prima-donna's  arrival. 

The  article  read  as  follows  :  "  The  First  Consul  and 
the  commander-in-chief  (Berthier)  attended  a  con- 
cert on  the  15th  Prairial,  which,  though  improvised, 
proved  very  agreeable  :  Italian  music  has  ever  new 
charms.  The  celebrated  Billington,  Grassini  and 
Marchesi  are  expected  in  Milan,  and  we  are  informed 
that  they  are  shortly  going  to  Paris  to  give  concerts 
there." 

This  notice  was  printed  for  Josephine's  benefit. 
Bonaparte  dissimulated  his  infidelity  behind  a 
change  of  dates,  and  masked  behind  the  name  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  95 

Billington,  the  only  person  in  whom  he  took  any 
interest. 

At  Milan,  during  the  days  which  preceded  Ma- 
rengo, he  spent  every  hour  which  he  could  spare  in 
listening  to  Grassini.  He  was  possessed  by  her 
marvellous  voice,  and  held  it  to  be  the  finest  trophy 
of  the  campaign,  and  he  wished  that  she  should  cel- 
ebrate his  triumphant  return  to  France  and  sing 
his  victories.  He  desired  Grassini  to  be  in  Paris  by 
the  14th  of  July  for  the  fete  of  "  La  Concorde  "  and 
that  she  and  the  tenor  Bianchi  should  sing  an  Ital- 
ian duet.  With  this  object  in  view  he  despatched 
an  order  to  the  minister  of  the  Interior,  desiring  the 
composition  of  a  song  celebrating  "  The  deliverance 
of  the  Cisalpine  and  the  glory  of  our  arms,  a  fine 
poem  in  Italian,"  insisted  the  Consul,  "  set  to  good 
music. 

Twenty- three  days  later,  in  the  church  of  Les  In- 
valides,  the  Temple  of  Mars,  which  was  magnifi- 
cently decorated,  official  France  assembled  in  solemn 
state  to  celebrate  the  nation's  victories,  and  when 
the  First  Consul  had  taken  his  seat  upon  the  plat- 
form, Grassini  and  Bianchi  sang  their  duets,  for 
there  were  two  Italian  numbers  sung  in  successioD. 
"Who  could  better,"  inquired  the  Moniteur,  " cel- 
ebrate the  victory  of  Marengo  than  those  to  whom 
it  assured  peace  and  prosperity  ? " 


96  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

It  was  audacious  of  Bonaparte  to  have  his  mis- 
tress sing  at  an  official  fete,  and  had  the  world  sus- 
pected their  relations  there  would  certainly  have 
heen  a  clamor  raised,  but  it  seems  their  connection 
was  then  unknown,  even  Josephine  being  unsus- 
picious, for  she  placed  reliance  in  the  article  in  the 
army  bulletin ;  moreover,  the  caprice,  the  physical 
caprice  at  least,  was  not  of  long  duration.  Before 
leaving  Milan,  Grassini,  intoxicated  by  a  success 
long  and  vainly  desired,  imagined  that  she  was 
going  to  play  a  great  role,  not  only  in  the  theatre 
but  in  politics  ;  she  fancied  that  she  had  a  great  in- 
fluence over  her  lover,  and,  being  naturally  good- 
natured,  she  left  Italy  laden  with  petitions  from  her 
compatriots.    . 

Bonaparte  was  not  a  man  who  permitted  any  one 
to  talk  business  when  he  desired  to  talk  love,  and 
Grassini  bored  him  ;  moreover,  he  exacted  that  she 
should  not  show  herself  anywhere,  but  should  live 
like  a  recluse  in  a  little  house  in  the  rue  Chante- 
reine  ;  this  did  not  suit  the  lady  at  all,  for  she  had 
dreamed  of  quite  a  different  existence,  of  a  liaison 
a  Vitalienne,  which  would  have  advertised  at  once 
her  name,  her  person  and  her  talent,  and  as  fidelity 
was  not  her  forte  she  was  bored  to  death ;  there 
was  not  even  a  theatre  open  to  her,  for  her  terrible 
jargon  closed  the  door  of  the  opera,  and  at  that 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  97 

time  there  was  no  Italian  Opera  in  Paris,  so  she 
took  to  herself  a  lover  in  the  person  of  Rode,  the 
violinist.  Bonaparte  learned  of  her  infidelity  and 
severed  his  relations  with  her,  bnt  whatever  fear 
Rode  may  have  felt  for  his  subsequent  artistic 
career,  neither  he  nor  Grassini  were  made  to  suffer  ; 
twice  even  the  Consul  accorded  them  the  Theatre  de 
la  Republique  for  their  concerts,  the  second  of  which 
was  particularly  brilliant,  the  box-receipts  amount- 
ing to  thirteen  thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty- 
eight  francs  and  seventy-five  centimes,  and  the  ac- 
count given  of  it  by  Suard  in  the  Moniteur  being 
almost  lyric. 

Later  Giuseppina  Grassini  returned  to  the  wander- 
ing life  of  a  star,  and  came  and  went  between  Ber- 
lin, London,  Milan,  Genoa  and  Paris  ;  she  was  feted 
and  flattered  everywhere,  and  made  engagements 
for  three  thousand  pounds  sterling  for  five  months  ; 
nevertheless,  when  she  passed  through  Paris  and 
knocked  at  the  door  of  the  private  apartment  of  the 
Tuileries  it  was  always  opened  to  her.  The  inter- 
views led  to  nothing,  but  they  distressed  Josephine 
greatly.  "  I  have  learned,"  she  wrote  to  one  of  her 
confidantes,  "that  Grassini  has  been  ten  days  in 
Paris,  and  it  seems  that  it  is  she  who  causes  my 
present  sufferings.  I  assure  you,  my  dear,  that  if 
I  were  in  the  least  to  blame  I  would  frankly  admit 


98  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND. 

it ;  you  would  do  well  to  send  Julie  (her  friend's 
maid)  to  watch  and  see  if  Grassini  calls,  try  also  to 
find  out  where  the  woman  lives. " 

The  whole  nature  of  Josephine  is  revealed  in 
this  letter.  What  could  Grassini  matter  to  her  ? 
Did  she  not  understand  that  there  was  no  serious 
tie  between  the  Italian  and  Bonaparte  ;  that  it  was 
only  one  of  those  meetings  wherein  memory  plays 
a  greater  part  than  desire  ?  No,  she  had  to  pry  and 
spy  and  address  her  complaints  and  her  lamentations 
to  a  woman  whom  the  Consul  disliked  and  whom 
he  had  almost  turned  out  of  the  Tuileries  :  such  was 
Josephine. 

She  seems,  however,  to  have  calmed  down  in  1807, 
for  when  they  were  organizing  the  "  chamber 
music,"  Napoleon  recalled  Grassini  to  Paris  and 
offered  the  prima-donna,  uniquely  to  the  Prima- 
donna,  a  fixed  salary  of  thirty- six  thousand  francs, 
fifteen  thousand  francs  of  annual  gratuities,  with- 
out counting  gifts,  and  fifteen  thousand  francs 
pension  on  her  retirement  ;  besides  which  she  was  to 
have  the  use  of  the  Opera  or  Les  Italiens  once 
each  winter  in  which  to  give  herself  a  benefit ;  and 
was  to  use  her  vacations,  if  she  chose,  in  travelling 
from  city  to  city,  advertising  herself  with  her 
sonorous  title  as  "  Prima-donna  to  his  Majesty  the 
Emperor." 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  99 

This  title,  however,  did  not  serve  to  defend 
Grassini  from  the  bandits  who  swarmed  on  the  roads, 
and  on  the  nineteenth  of  October,  1807,  near  Rouvrai 
on  the  confines  of  Yonne  and  the  Cote  d'Or,  her 
travelling  carriage  was  attacked  by  four  deserters 
from  a  Swiss  regiment  and  the  poor  creature  was 
outraged,  stripped  and  maltreated ;  but  two  days 
afterwards  justice  befell  the  aggressors  and  the 
Emperor  admitted  to  the  Legion  of  Honor  M. 
Durandeau,  commander  of  the  national  guard  at 
Viteaux,  who  had  slain  two  of  the  bandits  and 
arrested  a  third.  It  is  said  that  Grassini  implored 
the  bandits,  who  had  taken  a  miniature  of  Bonaparte 
set  in  diamonds,  to  keep  the  jewels,  but  to  return 
the  miniature.  It  is  recounted  that,  in  a  drawing- 
room  where  great  indignation  was  expressed 'over 
Crescentini  being  decorated  with  the  Iron  Crown, 
Grassini  exclaimed:  "Ah,  but  you  forget  her 
wound ! "  (referring  to  the  former's  chagrin  at 
her  own  appointment  as  first  prima-donna  to  his 
Majesty.)  A  man  of  the  world  of  that  time  tells  us 
that  La  Grassini  was  clever  and  witty,  spoke  slangy 
French  with  a  strong  Italian  accent,  and  that  her 
habitual  outspokenness  gave  her  a  reputation  for 
sincerity  and  honesty. 

Such  was  the  situation  from  1807  to  1814.  Grassini 
received  from  the  Emperor  alone  seventy  thousand 


100  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

francs  a  year,  which  was  more  than  she  received  from 
the  public,  for  the  latter  became  less  enthusiastic 
with  time,  as  was  plainly  shown  at  Les  Italiens  in 
November  of  1813  when,  with  great  ado,  Horace  et 
les  Curiaces  of  Cimarosa  was  produced ;  but  she 
always  achieved  a  success  at  the  "  Theatre  de  la 
Cour,"  and  received  the  same  consideration  from  the 
Emperor. 

Gratitude  was  not  one  of  La  Grassini's  virtues, 
nor  were  memory  and  affection  characteristics  of 
hers,  for,  after  Napoleon's  banishment  to  Saint 
Helena,  she  attached  herself  to  his  conqueror  the 
Duke  of  Wellington  and  deployed  her  charms  of 
voice  and  person  for  his  benefit. 

The  "Iron  Duke"  had  a  fancy  for  that  which 
Napoleon  had  praised,  and  it  is  related  that  he  asked 
David  to  paint  his  portrait,  to  which  request  the 
artist  replied  ' '  that  he  only  painted  historical  sub- 
jects." 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND*  fllJSKAND.  lOl' 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

FOOTLIGHT  BEAUTIES. 

Bonaparte's  infatuation  for  Grassini  was  transi- 
tory, and  Josephine's  jealousy  of  brief  duration; 
and  although  other  actresses  visited  the  Consul's 
private  apartments  in  the  Tuileries,  their  visits  need 
not  have  caused  her  any  great  anxiety,  for  they 
were  persons  of  meaiocre  virtue  to  whom  Bonaparte 
could  not  become  seriously  attached,  and  of  whom 
he  simply  required  that  they  be  pretty  and  com- 
plaisant during  the  few  hours  he  passed  in  their  com- 
pany; but  it  sufficed  that  such  callers  came  to  the 
Tuileries,  and  the  wife  prowled  about  the  staircases 
and  corridors,  candle  in  hand,  with  the  hope  of 
surprising  them  and  enacting  some  scene  which 
would  put  her  husband  plainly  in  the  wrong. 

Had  it  not  been  for  Josephine,  these  passing  fancies 
of  the  great  conqueror  would  never  have  come  to 
light ;  it  was  she  who  discovered  and  told  of  them  ; 
but,  commonplace  as  these  brief  romances  were, 
there  is  sufficient   reason  for  reviewing  them  as 


"  '1V2  *  ''  *'  *  *tf  APdLEokJ'  tX^V  B  B   AND   H  USB  A  X I  >. 

they  reveal  certain  phases  of  his  character  which 
might  be  vainly  searched  for  elsewhere. 

Aside  from  Grassini,  and  perhaps  Mme.  Branchu, 
who  was  so  homely  that  to  accuse  him  of  a  weakness 
for  her  would  seem  absurd  were  it  not  possible  that 
the  dilettante  in  him  might  have  rendered  her  attrac- 
tive because  of  the  wonderful  talent  she  displayed 
in  tragic  opera ;  he  never  affected  the  queens  of 
the  lyric  stage. 

No  dancers  visited  the  Tuileries,  although  it  was 
the  moment  when  dancers  were  in  vogue  ;  when 
Clotide  was  supported  by  Prince  Pignatelli,  who 
allowed  her  one  hundred  thousand  francs  a  month, 
and  was  outbid  by  Admiral  Mazaredo,  who  offered 
her  four  hundred  thousand  ;  when  Bigottini  was 
showered  with  favors  from  all  sides,  and  thereby 
accumulated  a  fortune  for  her  numerous  progeny, 
for  whom  in  later  years  she  arranged  advantageous 
marriages.  No  comediennes,  neither  Mile.  Mars, 
who  was  not  at  all  pretty  when  she  made  her  debut, 
nor  Mile.  Devienne,  the  incomparable  soubrette 
whose  bright  face  betrayed  her  cleverness  and  wit, 
but  who  was  unable  to  utter  a  word  in  answer  to 
the  flattering  speech  the  Emperor  once  made  her 
when  en  route  for  a  hunt,  nor  Mile.  Mezeray, 
who  was  greatly  interested  in  Lucien  Bonaparte, 
nor    yet    Mile.    Gros,    who    made    Joseph    happy, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  103 

ever  went  in  at  the  famous    " little  door"  of  the 
Tuileries. 

In  1808,  Bonaparte  may  have  been  interested  in 
Mme.  Leverd,  for  after  a  single  performance  at 
Saint-Cloud  she  was  admitted  to  the  Societe  Fran- 
gaise,  and  it  would  scarcely  have  been  at  the  in- 
stigation of  M.  Remusat  the  manager,  for  later, 
despite  the  Emperor's  wishes  and  orders,  he  posi- 
tively persecuted  her.  Mme.  Leverd  was  an  excep- 
tionally graceful  and  charming  woman,  so  sprightly, 
coquettish  and  bewitching  that  her  lack  of  real 
talent  was  generally  condoned  ;  but  if  Napoleon 
had  a  fancy  for  her — which  is  not  certain — she  was 
the  sole  comedienne  who  appealed  to  him,  for  by 
nature,  temperament  and  choice  he  was  drawn  to 
tragedians. 

That  was  the  most  glorious  period  in  the  history 
of  tragedy  and  the  Theatre  Francais,  the  time, 
when,  before  a  highly-cultivated  audience  who 
would  not  permit  the  slightest  inaccuracy  to  pass 
unnoticed  ;  before  soldiers  who  were  in  accord  with 
noble  and  generous  sentiments,  a  marvellous  com- 
pany kept  alive  the  traditions  of  epic  literature. 
While  Bonaparte  favored  the  actors  with  his  pro- 
tection, and  was  not  sparing  with  money,  he  was 
severely  critical  ;  he  held  that  the  lines  which  they 
spoke  were  precepts  for  the  nation  and  were  of  less 


104  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

importance  for  its  literary  education  than  for  the 
formation  of  its  morals.  He  once  said  to  Goethe  : 
"  Tragedy  should  be  the  school  of  kings  and  people, 
it  is  the  highest  point  a  poet  can  attain."  One 
evening  on  retiring  he  said  :  "  Tragedy  warms  the 
heart  and  elevates  the  mind  ;  it  does,  and  should, 
create  heroes,"  and  it  was  then  that  he  added  :  "  If 
Corneille  was  alive  I  would  make  him  a  king." 

Bonaparte  did  not  care  for  melodrama,  which  he 
claimed  had  no  proper  place  in  dramatic  literature, 
and  had  little  taste  for  comedy,  considering,  like 
Moliere  and  Beaumarchais,  that  it  was  unreal, 
agreeing  with  Le  Sage  that  it  was  repulsive,  and 
with  Fabre  d'Eglantine  that  it  was  pitifully  un- 
J  natural ;  farce  was  utterly  incomprehensible,  and 
failed  to  distract  him.  Jokes,  witticisms  and 
cleverly  turned  phrases,  even  when  they  touched 
upon  the  main  subject,  but  which  were  not,  as  he 
said,  "  the  spirit  of  the  thing,"  pretty  phrases  and 
graceful  couplets  all  escaped  him  ;  he  despised  and 
disdained,  or,  rather,  he  ignored  them.  Tragedy 
seemed  to  him  strong,  serious,  noble  ;  his  equals 
spoke  in  the  kings,  heroes  and  gods  of  tragedy,  in 
their  words  he  imagined  he  heard  his  own  voice,  for 
it  was  in  such  fashion  that  he  wished  to  be  repre- 
sented to  posterity,  when,  with  the  lapse  of  time, 
his  life  should  be  depicted  on  the  stage. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       105 

Having  this  passion  for  tragedy  Napoleon  was 
naturally  drawn  in  his  hours  of  leisure  to  seek  those 
who  interpreted  it ;  the  pretty  faces  of  the  sou- 
brettes,  the  affected  innocence  of  the  ingneues,  and 
the  airs  of  the  great  coquettes  could  all  be  met  at 
his  court,  the  whole  company  of  the  social  comedy 
were  at  his  beck  and  call ;  but  the  women  who  im- 
personated Phedra,  Andromache,  Iphigenia  and 
Hermione,  were  no  longer  courtesans  but  beings 
idealized  by  the  characters  they  assumed,  and  view 
ing  them  at  the  play  it  was  not  the  actress  he 
desired,  but  the  heroine  she  represented,  and  the 
artist's  actual  presence  did  not  detract  from  this 
impression,  the  satisfaction  of  a  purely  sensual 
desire  being  hid  from  his  eyes  behind  the  shadow 
of  poetry. 

Kecalled  to  reality  by  the  press  of  business,  hav- 
ing but  a  moment  to  give  to  the  creatures  of  his 
fancy,  unfamiliar  with  courteous  phrases  and  un- 
able to  dissimulate  the  scorn  he  felt  for  those  who, 
at  a  message  from  a  valet,  would  rush  to  pamper 
his  senses,  Napoleon  manifested,  in  both  speech  and 
action,  a  brutality  which  in  another  would  have 
been  pure  cynicism  :  actually  no  one  was  less  a 
cynic  than  he.  "  To  everything  pertaining  to  sen- 
suality," says  one  of  his  intimate  servitors,  "he 
gave  a  poetic  color  and  name  ;  "  even  his  brusque- 


106  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

ness  of  speech  dissimulated  a  certain  embarrassment 
which  he  always  felt  in  the  presence  of  women.  He 
professed  a  viciousness  which  he  did  not  possess ; 
thus,  in  conversation  at  Saint  Helena,  he  wished  to 
appear  more  familiar  with  sensations  than  senti- 
ments, while  in  reality  no  one  was  more  sentimental 
than  he. 

Desire  in  him  did  not  have  its  rise  in  sensuality, 
but  from  an  over-excited  imagination,  and  it  hap- 
pened not  infrequently,  that  by  the  time  the  fair 
one  was  at  hand  the  current  of  his  thoughts  had 
changed,  that  he  was  occupied  with  affairs  of  state 
and  anything  which  distracted  him  was  a  bore.  A 
tap  at  the  door  was  the  signal  that  the  expected 
guest  had  arrived:  "  Bid  her  wait,"  the  Consul 
would  exclaim.  Upon  a  second,  and  impatient  tap  : 
"  Bid  her  disrobe,"  the  harassed  Consul  would  com- 
mand. At  the  third  tap  he  lost  all  patience  and 
would  cry :  "  Send  her  away !  "  and  then  would 
return  to  his  work. 

Such  was  the  experience,  so  we  are  informed,  of 
Mile.  Duchesnois,  but  she  was  accustomed  to  such 
adventures.  At  the  beginning  of  the  consulate  a 
young  elegant,  who  had  just  inherited  a  fortune, 
invited  some  of  his  friends  to  celebrate  his  good 
luck  at  a  country  house  in  the  environs  of  Saint 
Denis  ;  they  breakfasted,  sang  and  played  cards,  then 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND.  107 

they  began  to  feel  bored,  and  the  host  sent  to  a 
well-known  house  in  the  Chaussee  d'Antin  for  some 
of  the  gentler  sex  to  enliven  his  guests.  One  of  the 
young  women  remained  without  a  gallant,  being  too 
plain  to  be  attractive,  although  possessed  of  fine  eyes, 
a  svelt  figure,  an  air  of  amiability  and  an  expres- 
sion of  sadness  which  rendered  her  interesting ;  the 
party  played  at  hide-and-seek  in  the  park,  and  this 
girl,  who  was  Mile.  Duchesnois,  ran  like  a  fawn,  all 
her  movements  being  graceful  and  supple,  while  her 
musical  voice  and  clever  conversation  made  her 
appear  more  intellectual  and  cultivated  than  her 
companions.  Among  the  company  was  a  young 
man  who  took  pity  upon  her,  conversed  with  her, 
and,  finding  her  clever,  cultivated  her  society  and 
finally  spoke  of  her  to  Legouve  who  was  curious  to 
meet  her,  and  who,  on  hearing  her  read  some  verses, 
was  astonished  at  her  talent. 

Legouve  gave  Mile.  Duchesnois  advice  and  in- 
troduced her  at  Mme.  de  Montesson's  where  she  met 
General  Valence ;  he  in  turn  became  interested  in 
her  and  promised  to  interest  Mme.  Bonaparte  in  her 
behalf  and  arranged  for  her  debut.  She  made  her 
first  appearance  in  Phedra,  and  it  was  not  until  a 
year  or  two  later  that  her  adventure  at  the  Tuile- 
ries  took  place.  Women  have  certain  memories 
which  nothing  can  obliterate,  and  Mile.  Duchesnois 


108  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

guarded  throughout  her  life  the  apprehension  that 
the  words  so  often  heard  in  her  early  youth  and  in 
the  days  of  servitude,  "  she  is  too  ugly,"  would 
again  ring  in  her  ears. 

Therese  Bourgoin  was  also  dismissed  in  the  same 
unceremonious  manner,  but  she  who  so  insolently 
answered  :  ' '  Neither  seen  nor  heard  of, "  in  response 
to  a  letter  of  inquiry  from  a  duchess  of  the  Empire 
and  wife  of  a  marshal  of  France  regarding  a  lost 
parrot,  was  not  likely  to  accept  such  treatment  in 
a  spirit  of  humility,  particularly  when  the  affront 
to  her  vanity  was  augmented  by  a  personal  loss — 
that  of  a  rich  lover,  the  minister  of  the  Interior, 
Chaptal.  After  Therese  Bourgoin's  second  ap- 
pearance, in  which  she  had  been  greatly  harassed, 
Chaptal  secured  an  engagement  for  her  at  the 
Theatre  Francais,  and  to  confirm  this  favor  he 
wrote  a  public  and  official  letter  to  Mile.  Dumesnil, 
announcing  the  bestowal  of  a  ministerial  gratuity 
and  thanking  her  for  having  profitably  used  the 
leisure  of  her  retirement  in  the  formation  of  such 
a  pupil.  Mile.  Dumesnil,  at  his  request,  gave  the 
debutante  some  worldly  advice,  and  Chaptal  and 
the  young  actress  were  to  be  seen  everywhere 
together ;  he  placed  the  newspapers  at  her  orders, 
and  gave  Paris  food  for  scandal.  Mile.  Bourgoin 
was  just  suited  to  a  man  of  fifty ;  she  had  an  in- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND  HUSBAND.  109 

genuous  air  and  roguish  smile,  clear,  infantile  eyes, 
which  gave  her  an  appearance  of  innocence,  a  ring- 
ing voice  and  spiciness  of  speech,  which,  combined, 
gained  for  her  the  appellation  of  "  the  goddess  of 
joy  and  pleasure." 

Chaptal's  great  mistake  lay  in  disregarding  ap- 
pearances and  so  compromising  himself  ;  blinded  by 
Mile.  Bourgoin's  specious  manner,  he  believed  im- 
plicitly in  her  fidelity  ;  a  belief  of  which  Napoleon 
was  malicious  enough  to  disabuse  him.  One  even- 
ing, when  he  had  a  business  engagement  with  the 
minister,  he  also  made  an  appointment  with  Mile. 
Bourgoin,  and  the  actress  was  announced  within 
Chaptal's  hearing  ;  Napoleon  sent  word  that  she 
must  wait,  and  a  little  later  excused  himself  entirely, 
but  Chaptal,  on  hearing  his  mistress  announced,  had 
gathered  up  his  papers  and  departed,  and  he  sent  in 
his  resignation  that  same  night.  The  young  woman 
on  her  side  openly  declared  war,  and  at  St.  Peters- 
burg, where  she  went  after  the  peace  of  Tilsit,  she 
regaled  her  adorers  with  all  the  epigrams  and 
lampoons  regarding  the  Emperor  which  were 
amusing  Paris. 

At  Erfurt  the  Emperor  took  his  revenge  and 
entertained  the  Czar  with  epigrams  on  Mile. 
Bourgoin,  warning  him  against  her  over- generosity 
in  affairs  of  the  heart,  which  naturally  militated 


110  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

against  her  success.  At  the  restoration  she  espoused 
the  royalist  cause,  all  the  more  intensely  because  she 
had  been  presented  to  the  king  by  the  Duke  de  Berry 
and  had  good  reasons  for  clinging  to  the  Bourbons. 
During  the  hundred  days  she  did  not  hesitate  to 
array  herself  in  their  colors,  for  which  no  one  inter- 
fered with  her,  but  as  the  Duke  de  Berry  failed  to 
renew  their  relations  on  his  return,  her  enthusiasm 
died  a  natural  death. 

Although  Napoleon's  relations  with  Mesdames 
Duchesnois  and  Bourgoin  were  unimportant,  it  was 
not  the  same  with  Mile.  George.  Napoleon  was 
installed  at  Saint-Cloud  when  Mile.  George  visited 
him  for  the  first  time ;  she  was  received  in  the 
small  apartment  opening  into  the  orangery,  and  it 
is  claimed  that  it  was  on  this  occasion  that  he  stung 
her  pride  by  saying  :  "  You  must  have  hideous  feet 
for  you  keep  your  stockings  on. "  Her  animal  beauty 
was  so  perfect  in  every  other  respect  that  this  defect 
struck  Napoleon's  eye  and  so  impressed  him  that 
the  remark  escaped  involuntarily. 

NoTone  was  more  keenly  alive  to  the  beauty  of 
well-modelled  feet  and  hands  than  Bonaparte ;  it  was 
one  of  the  first  things  that  he  looked  at  in  a  woman, 
and  when  they  were  ill- formed  he  used  to  say  : 
"  Her  extremities  are  common."  Such  was  the  case 
with  Mile.  George,  who,  at  seventeen,  was  superbly 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  Ill 

handsome,  whose  head,  shoulders,  arms  and  body 
were  fit  for  a  painter's  model,  but  whose  extremities, 
particularly  the  feet,  were  very  ugly  ;  doubtless  the 
coarse,  ill-made  shoes  which  she  had  worn  when 
sweeping  her  father's  doorsteps  at  Amiens  had 
helped  to  deform  them.  The  father  was  manager  of 
a  theatre  and  led  its  orchestra. 

Napoleon  passed  nearly  the  whole  of  that  winter 
at  Saint-Cloud,  and  Mile.  George  was  frequently 
his  guest  ;  aside  from  admiring  her  beauty,  he  was 
entertained  by  her  cleverness  and  aptness  at  repartee  ; 
she  recounted  to  him  all  the  stories,  and  imitated 
for  him  the  actions  of  the  habitues  of  the  Theatre 
Frangais,  and  in  those  days  there  were  lots  of  good 
stories  going  about.  Her  visits  were  continued 
after  he  returned  to  Paris,  where  he  received  her  in 
an  apartment  of  the  entresol  at  the  Tuileries  ;  he 
never  went  to  her  house,  and  so  never  encountered 
Coster  de  Saint-Victor,  or  any  other  of  her  lovers. 
Mile.  George  claimed  that  her  intimacy  with  Napo- 
leon endured  for  two  years,  and  that  during  all 
that  time  she  was  absolutely  faithful :  it  was  more 
than  was  expected  of  her. 

Josephine  soon  learned  of  this  affair,  was  unusu- 
ally disquieted  by  it,  and  treated  her  husband  to 
innumerable  scenes.  ' '  She  worries  a  great  deal  more 
than  is  called  for, "  wrote  Bonaparte  ;  ' '  she  is  always 


112  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

fearful  that  I  may  fall  seriously  in  love ;  can  she 
not  understand  that  love  is  not  for  me  ?  Love  is  a 
passion  which  makes  one  willing  to  abandon  every- 
thing for  the  sake  of  the  beloved  person  ;  certainly 
I  am  not  of  a  nature  to  give  myself  up  so  completely, 
and  what  can  it  then  matter  to  Josephine  that  I 
amuse  myself  with  women  for  whom  I  feel  no  such 
sentiment  ? " 

No  one  could  reason  better,  but  reason  went  for 
nothing  with  Josephine.  She  was  obliged  to  ac- 
knowledge, however,  that  Napoleon  was  very 
discreet;  there  was  no  scandal,  no  favors  shown 
Mile.  George  as  an  actress,  for  when  she  failed  to 
keep  her  engagement  she  was  rudely  enough  men- 
aced with  imprisonment  and  knew  that  the  threat 
was  not  an  idle  one  ;  when  she  played  at  court 
she  received  the  same  fee  as  her  comrades,  and 
it  is  said  that  when  she  made  bold  enough  to  ask 
Napoleon  for  his  portrait  he  handed  her  a  double 
Napoleon,  saying  :  "Here  it  is,  and  said  to  be  a 
good  likeness." 

Probably  he  gave  her  money,  for  on  the  books  of 
the  privy  purse  the  item,  "  handed  to  His  Majesty 
the  Emperor,"  is  frequently  repeated,  designating 
sums  of  from  ten  to  twenty  thousand  francs,  al- 
though nothing  indicates  the  uses  for  which  they 
were  destined  ;  on  one  occasion  only,  the  10th  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  113 

August,  1807,  does  Mile.  George's  name  appear  on 

these  books,  against  a  gift  of  ten  thousand  francs> 

but  three  years  had  then  elapsed  since  the  cessation 

of  her  visits  to  the  Tuileries,  and  this  present  was 

doubtless    simply    a    memento    presented    on   her 

saint's  day.    Less  than  a  year  later,  on  the  11th  of 

May,  1808,  Mile.  George  left  Paris  surreptitiously  in 

company  with  Duport,  an  opera  dancer,  who,  fearing 

to  be  arrested  at  the  barriers,  had  disguised  himself 

as  a  woman.     Ignoring  alike  her  engagement  at  the 

Theatre  Frangaisandher  creditors,  she  fled  toEussia 

to  rejoin  a  lover,  who,  they  say,  had  promised  to 

marry  her  ;  this  lover  was  Benckendorff,  brother  of 

the  Countess  d'Lieven,  who   came  to  Paris  in  the 

suite  of  the  ambassador  Tolstoi ;  he  had  just  been 

recalled  and  purposed  to  show  off  his  mistress  in  St. 

Petersburg,  and  above  all  before  the  Czar. 

Underlying  all  this  there  was  quite  an  intrigue, 

the  object  of  which  was  to  win  the  Czar  from  Mme. 

Narishkine,  by  a  brief   liaison  with  the    French 

actress,  from  which,  it  was  thought,    he  could  be 

easily  lead  back  to  the  Empress.     Mile.  George  most 

assuredly  suspected  nothing  of  these  fine  schemes, 

and  in  letters  to  her  mother  she  expatiated  upon 

the  charms  of  her  "  good  Benckendorff,"  and  signed 

herself,  in  August  of  1808,  "  George  Benckendorff." 

She  was  presented  to  the  Emperor  Alexander  who 
8 


114  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

gave  her  a  handsome  diamond  ornament  and  had 
her  called  to  Peterhoff ,  hut  she  was  never  asked  the 
second  time  ;  she  claimed  that  the  grand  duke, 
who,  after  a  performance  of  Phedra,  said  :  "Your 
Mile.  George  is  not  worth  as  much  in  her  way  as  my 
charger  in  his,"  visited  her  daily  and  "  loved  her  as 
a  sister." 

According  to  her,  the  Kussian  nobility  and  gentry 
alike  were  her  adorers,  but  this  was  not  the  end  the 
conspirators  had  in  view  when  they  encouraged  her 
going  to  St.  Petersburg,  nor  was  it  what  Napoleon 
had  permitted  them  to  plan  when  the  plot  had  been 
revealed  to  him  ;  nevertheless,  when,  in  1812,  Mile. 
George  desired  to  return  to  France  and  rushed  to 
rejoin  the  principal  actors  of  the  Society  Frangaise 
who  had  been  summoned  to  Dresden  during  the 
armistice,  the  Emperor  not  only  had  her  reinstated 
in  the  society,  but  ordered  that  she  should  receive  a 
salary  for  the  six  years  of  absence ;  her  comrades 
never  forgave  that. 

During  the  hundred  days  Mile.  George  sent  word 
to  Napoleon  that  she  could  give  him  papers  which 
would  compromise  the  Duke  d'Otrante,  and  Napo- 
leon sent  a  trusted  messenger  to  her  ;  on  his  return 
he  asked  :  "  Did  not  mademoiselle  tell  you  that  her 
affairs  were  very  much  embarrassed  ? "  "  No,  sire, " 
replied  the  messenger,  "  she  only  spoke  of  her  desire 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  115 

tc  hand  those  papers  personally  to  your  Majesty." 
"  I  already  know  what  they  refer  to,  Caulaincourt 
has  mentioned  them,"  returned  the  Emperor,  "and 
he  told  me  also  that  Mile.  George  was  in  straitened 
circumstances  ;  you  are  to  give  her  twenty  thousand 
francs  from  my  private  purse." 

Mile.  George  at  least  was  grateful,  and  undoubt- 
edly the  sentiments  which  she  frankly  avowed  mili- 
tated against  her.  and  caused  her  brutal  expulsion 
from  the  Theatre  Frangais.  Even  in  her  old  age, 
when  nothing  remained  either  in  face  or  figure  of 
the  one  time  triumphant  beauty,  her  voice  trembled 
when  she  spoke  of  Napoleon,  and  she  manifested 
such  unfeigned  emotion  that  she  deeply  impressed 
the  young  men  who  listened  to  her,  and  it  was  not 
the  lover  whom  she  lauded,  but  the  Emperor.  This 
woman,  not  from  the  prudery  pf  old  age,  for  she 
spoke  freely  enough  of  other  lovers,  but  from  a  sort 
of  awe,  seemed  to  forget  that  Napoleon  had  ever 
found  her  beautiful  and  sought  her  love,  and  she 
spoke  not  of  the  man  he  had  been  for  her,  but  of 
the  man  he  had  been  for  France.  Mile.  George  re- 
minds one  of  one  of  those  nymphs  whom  the  gods 
honored  by  a  brief  caress,  and  who,  blinded  by  the 
heavenly  effulgence,  failed  to  see  the  face  of  the 
deity. 


116  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

READERS. 

Tragedians  alone  climbed  the  dark  staircase, 
and  under  the  guidance  of  Constant  or  Roustam 
traversed  a  gloomy  corridor,  lighted  night  and  day 
by  argand  lamps,  and  finally  reached  a  room  in  the 
entresol  from  which  a  secret  staircase  led  to  Bona- 
parte's private  apartments.  Every  morning  Mme. 
Bernard,  the  imperial  florist,  placed  a  bouquet  in 
this  room,  there  was  an  appropriation  of  six  hun- 
dred francs  a  year  for  that  express  purpose,  but  the 
flowers,  which  were  renewed  daily,  died  less  quickly 
than  the  sentiment  which  inspired  the  visitors. 

As  Bonaparte  rose  in  power  these  visitors — the 
solicitous,  the  ambitious,  the  intriguants — became  so 
numerous  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  keep  count 
of  them  all.  Every  man  who  fills  a  position  of 
power  finds  himself  solicited  by  like  callers,  who 
await  only  a  sign  to  give  themselves  to  him,  and, 
keeping  themselves  constantly  in  view,  beg  for  a 
glance,   seeking  a  profitable    dishonor.     Napoleon 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  11 7 

was  thirty  in  1800,  thus,  up  to  1810,  he  was  in  the 
prime  of  life,  and  in  vigorous  health  ;  he  neither 
sought  nor  shunned  amours,  but,  aside  from  Jose- 
phine, only  two  women  ever  inspired  him  with  deep 
affection ;  he  thought  but  moderately  well  of  the 
sex,  none  of  them  ever  interfered  with  his  work, 
distracted  his  thoughts,  retarded  his  progress  or 
caused  a  modification  of  his  plans  ;  and  these  little 
episodes  were  not  unlike  the  supper  which  was 
nightly  set  out  for  him  upon  one  end  of  his  writing- 
table  :  he  would  not  have  taken  a  step  to  procure 
food,  but,  finding  it  at  hand,  very  naturally  par- 
took of  it,  and  at  once  returned  to  his  work.  The 
important  fact  is  not  that  a  few  veiled  women 
stole  by  night  into  the  Emperor's  secret  apartment, 
but  that  no  woman,  wife  or  mistress,  habitually 
frequented  the  study  and  the  ministerial  cabinet. 

If  Napoleon  were  not  the  person  in  question,  if 
certain  of  his  liaisons  had  not  been  recounted  with 
details  invented  at  pleasure,  and  if  some  of  his 
favorites  had  not  become  authors,  either  for  the 
pecuniary  profit  accruable  from  their  memoirs,  or 
for  the  pleasure  of  appearing  before  the  public  in  a 
role  they  had  never  played,  it  would  hardly  be 
worth  while  to  take  note  of  these  transitory  love- 
affairs,  but  the  calumnies  have  been  too  widely 
spread  to  render  the  truth  unimportant. 


118  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    ANTD    HUSBAND. 

One  of  the  women  who  have  become  best  known 
as  a  writer,  and  who  received  innumerable  favors 
from  both  Consul  and  Emperor,  must  still  escape 
censure ;  for  circumstantial  evidence,  no  matter 
how  convincing,  should  not  replace  positive  proof, 
and  the  study  of  characters  analogous  to  hers  will 
place  her  in  the  rank  she  should  occupy. 

Another,  much  less  celebrated,  but  who  up  to  the 
present  time  has  done  good  service  to  pamphleteers, 
is  a  certain  Mme.  de  Vaudey,  who,  when  the  Em- 
pire was  proclaimed,  was  named  lady-in-waiting  on 
the  strong  recommendation  of  M.  Lecoulteux  de 
Canteleu.  She  was  well-born,  being  the  daughter 
of  that  remarkable  soldier,  Michaud  d'Argon,  who 
invented  the  floating  batteries  used  at  the  siege  of 
Gibraltar,  furnished  the  plans  for  the  campaign  in 
Holland  in  1793,  took  Breda  without  striking  a 
blow,  and  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  senators 
of  the  council ;  she  was  well  connected,  also,  for 
her  husband,  M.  de  Barberot  de  Vellexon,  Lord  oi 
Vaudey  and  captain  in  the  royal  Bourgundians,  wa& 
descended  from  an  old  Alsatian  family,  residents  of 
Gray  since  the  fifteenth  century ;  moreover,  she 
was  an  extremely  pretty  person,  sparkling  with  wit 
and  unusually  clever,  sang  exquisitely,  and  wrote 
even  better.  Mme.  de  Vaudey  was  appointed  lady- 
in-waiting  in  1814,  and  as  the  Empress  was  about 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  119 

starting  to  take  the  waters  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  she 
accompanied  her  ;  and  when  Napoleon,  early  in 
September,  rejoined  Josephine  at  Aix,  for  the  tri- 
umphal journey  on  the  Rhine,  Mme.  de  Vaudey 
accompanied  them  everywhere,  and  employed  her 
time  in  amusing  His  Majesty.  On  her  return  to 
Paris  she  thought  herself  in  a  position  to  brave  the 
Empress,  whose  jealousy  was  aroused,  and  to  set 
up  housekeeping  on  the  footing  of  a  favorite  in  a 
pretty  little  chateau  near  Auteuil  where  she  enter- 
tained largely,  gave  f§tes,  lived  like  a  princess,  and, 
following  her  imperial  mistress'  example,  ran  deeply 
into  debt.  Once,  after  a  prolonged  audience,  she 
laid  the  state  of  her  finances  before  the  Emperor, 
and  her  debts  were  paid  ;  a  second  disclosure  of  her 
pecuniary  embarrassment  met  with  the  same  suc- 
cess ;  but  when  she  petitioned  for  a  third  audience, 
Napoleon  refused  downright  to  see  her.  "  I  have 
not,"  he  said  to  Duroc,  "  either  sufficient  money 
nor  good-nature  to  pay  such  a  price  for  what  I  can 
get  so  cheaply  ;  thank  Madame  de  Vaudey  for  the 
kindness  she  has  shown  me,  and  never  mention 
her  to  me  again. " 

On  the  receipt  of  this  message  Mme.  de  Vaudey 
wrote  a  pathetic  letter,  declaring  that  she  would 
poison  herself  if  her  debts — debts  of  honor  ! — were 
not  paid  in  twenty- four  hours.     The  aide-de-camp 


120       NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

on  duty  was  hastily  dispatched  to  Auteuil,  and  found 
the  lady  disposed  for  anything — except  suicide  ; — it 
was  immediately  requested  that  she  send  in  her 
resignation  as  lady-in-waiting,  and  that  is  why  her 
name  does  not  appear  on  the  imperial  almanac. 

Some  years  later,  after  her  mind  had  become  un- 
balanced, Mme.  de  Vaudey  called  upon  M.  de  Po- 
lignac  and  offered  to  assassinate  Napoleon  ;  later 
still,  reduced  to  destitution,  almost  blind  and  with 
a  paralyzed  arm  she  peddled  her  Souvenirs  du  Di- 
rectoire  et  de  VEmpire  as  a  pretext  for  asking  as- 
sistance, and  it  was  she  who  furnished  Ladvocat, 
the  librarian,  with  the  greater  part  of  his  Me- 
moires  oVune  dame  du  Palais  ;  but  she  was  in  want 
and  mentally  unbalanced,  others  had  not  the  same 
excuse.  It  was  Josephine  who,  on  the  solicitation 
of  Lecoulteux,  had  introduced  Mme.  de  Vaudey  at 
court,  and  she  had  numberless  proteges  of  the 
same,  and  of  an  inferior  order,  none  of  whom 
merited  her  patronage  and  who  appear  to  have  had 
no  other  reason  for  being  at  court  than  their  will- 
ingness to  cater  to  Napoleon's  fancies. 

This  state  of  affairs  was  not  premeditated  by 
Josephine,  but  her  Creole  nature  had  need  of  com- 
panionship and  distraction  ;  she  liked  to  surround 
herself  with  agreeable  and  compliant  people  who 
were  neither  her  equals  nor  yet  servants,  whose 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  121 

pretty  faces  pleased  her  eye,  whose  conversation 
amused,  and  whose  accomplishments  helped  to  dis- 
tract her,  who,  in  short,  peopled  pleasantly  the 
palace  wherein  she  claimed  she  lived  in  sad  and 
solitary  state  ;  she  engaged  them  without  making 
many  inquiries,  sometimes  touched  by  a  sad  story, 
sometimes  attracted  by  a  pretty  face  or  an  unex- 
pectedly bright  response.  These  young  women, 
from  some  of  whom  the  bloom  of  innocence  had 
already  been  rubbed  by  friction  with  the  world, 
were  all  hoping  for  conquests  ;  poor  and  not  edu- 
cated to  entertain  conscientious  scruples,  they  were 
thrown  suddenly  into  the  midst  of  a  court  which 
was  one  of  the  most  splendid  in  history,  and  in  the 
long  idle  days  which  they  spent  in  the  Empress' 
private  apartments  they  had  nothing  to  do  but  ac- 
cept the  attentions  of  the  officers  with  whom  they 
constantly  came  in  contact  and  to  angle  for  hus- 
bands. Naturally  they  aspired  to  find  husbands 
among  the  officers  who  thronged  the  palace,  as  so 
many  women  no  better  than  themselves  had  done  ; 
women  who  were  then  wives  of  marshals  of  the 
Empire ;  they  saw  constantly  and  familiarly  him 
from  whom  emanated  all  favors,  who  at  a  sign 
could  make  or  destroy  one's  fortune,  and  put  them- 
selves in  his  way,  ambitious  for  that  sign,  ready  to 
risk  anything  in  order  to  obtain  it  ;  they  were  com- 


122  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

plaisant,  presented  themselves  only  when  desired, 
and  exerted  themselves  to  please,  and  as  the  subal- 
terns kept  a  sharp  lookout  to  see  if  the  Emperor 
admired  any  of  them,  arrangements  were  speedily 
concluded  and  affairs  followed  their  natural  course 
without  the  slightest  attempt  at  seduction  on  one 
side,  or  the  least  love  on  the  other.  But,  no  matter 
how  carefully  concealed  the  intrigue,  Josephine 
always  discovered  it ;  then  there  was  a  scene,  and 
the  young  person  was  discharged  ;  however,  she 
had  usually  received  a  good  dot  and  was  apt  to 
crown  her  career  by  marriage  with  some  gentleman 
who  was  not  over-scrupulous,  and  thus  become  the 
progenitor  of  people  of  some  importance. 

A  typical  case  was  that  of  Felicite  Longory, 
daughter  of  a  petty  officer  of  the  cabinet,  whom 
Josephine  had  called  to  fill  the  position  of  lady 
usher.  As  such  she  was  stationed  in  the  salon  into 
which  the  private  apartments  opened,  and  her  duties 
consisted  simply  of  throwing  open  the  double  doors 
for  the  passage  of  the  Emperor  or  Empress  ;  for  this 
service  she  received  three  thousand,  six  hundred 
francs  a  year,  which  sum  Josephine  supplemented 
by  six  hundred  francs  in  1806.  Felicite  was  a  per- 
sonage of  no  importance,  almost  a  servant,  yet  she 
succeeded  in  attracting  the  attention  of  the  Emperor, 
and,  the  inevitable  scene  with  the  Empress  ensu- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND.  128 

ing,  was  naturally  discharged,    and  later  married 
well. 

Mile.  Lacoste  stood  a  little  higher  on  the  social 
plane.  She  was  a  slight  and  pretty  blonde,  an 
orphan  without  fortune,  who  had  been  brought  up 
by  an  aunt  who  was  said  to  be  a  schemer,  and  who 
managed  her  niece's  presentation  to  Josephine.  The 
Empress,  touched  by  the  girl's  forlorn  state,  gave  her 
an  ambiguous  position,  vaguely  entitled  a  reader. 
Mile.  Lacoste  certainly  did  not  find  her  duties 
fatiguing,  for  hardly  had  she  assumed  the  position 
when  the  court  departed  for  Milan  where  the  corona- 
tion was  to  take  place,  and  she  followed  the  court, 
without  being  of  it,  for  she  had  no  clearly  defined 
position.  As  reader,  Mile.  Lacoste  was  denied  access 
to  the  drawing-room  of  the  ladies-in-waiting;  and,  too 
well-bred  to  associate  with  the  ladies'  maids,  near  to 
whom,  however,  she  was  lodged,  she  felt  isolated  and 
forlorn  in  her  new  surroundings.  At  Stupinitz  the 
Emperor  caught  sight  of  her  and  remarked  her  pretty 
face  ;  at  Milan  he  spoke  to  her  and  an  understanding 
was  arrived  at.  Josephine,  however,  soon  became 
aware  of  it  and  there  was  a  terrible  scene  ;  the  reader 
was  ordered  to  leave  and  her  aunt  summoned  from 
Paris  to  escort  her  home  ;  but  before  her  departure 
the  Emperor  insisted  that  she  should  appear  once  at 
least  among  the  Empress'  retinue.   -This  created 


124  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

a  great  scandal,  for  a  reader  was  not  supposed  to 
appear  outside  the  private  apartments.  On  return- 
ing to  Paris  Napoleon  undertook  to  find  a  husband 
for  Mile.  Lacoste,  and  married  her  to  a  rich  finan- 
cier ;  she  made  an  honest  wife  and  devoted  mother, 
and  never  reappeared  at  the  Tuileries. 

During  this  same  journey  to  Italy,  in  the  midst 
of  the  fetes  given  at  Genoa  in  celebration  of  the 
union  of  France  and  the  Ligurian  Republic,  a 
lady  by  name  of  Gazzani  or  Gazzana  (her  name  has 
been  written  both  ways),  crossed  Napoleon's  path  ; 
she  was  the  daughter  of  a  Mme.  Bertani,  a  dancer, 
or,  according  to  some  historians,  a  singer  connected 
with  the  Grand- Theatre. 

Out  of  compliment  to  Josephine  a  number  of 
Italian  ladies  had  gone  to  Milan,  and  it  had  been 
arranged  that  La  Gazzani  should  accompany  them  ; 
it  was  a  strangely  assorted  party,  comprising  ladies 
of  the  Negrone,  Brignole,  Doria  and  Remedi  fam- 
ilies, and  women  like  Mme.  Gazzani  and  Bianchina 
La  Fleche,  who  was  destined  to  such  a  brilliant 
career  in  Westphalia. 

Carlotta  Gazzani  was  tall,  rather  too  slight  per- 
haps, but  with  a  most  graceful  and  elegant  car- 
riage ;  her  hands  and  feet  were  not  remarkable  for 
their  beauty,  indeed  she  invariably  wore  gloves,  but 
her  features  were  of  the  purest  type  of  Italian 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  125 

beauty  and  her  eyes  large,  dark  and  very  brilliant. 
Even  women  praised  La  Gazzani's  beauty,  which 
is  positive  proof  that  it  was  great,  but  also,  that  she 
lacked  that  peculiar  and  indescribable  charm  which 
renders  some  women  so  captivating  and  the  envy 
of  all  their  sex.  Mme.  Remusat  admitted  that 
it  was  her  husband,  then  first  chamberlain,  who 
charged  himself  with  the  Italian  beauty's  introduc- 
tion at  court,  and  who  persuaded  the  Emperor  to 
nominate  her  reader  to  Josephine  ;  evidently  it  was 
not  Talleyrand  alone  who,  as  Napoleon  once  said, 
"  always  had  his  pocket  full  of  mistresses." 

Mme.  Gazzani,  then  called  Mme.  Gazzani  Brentano, 
and  who  long  afterwards  assumed  the  title  of  Bar- 
oness de  Brentano,  replaced  Mile.  Lacoste,  at  a  salary 
of  five  hundred  francs  a  month  ;  from  1805  to  1807 
little  was  heard  of  her,  for  during  that  period  which 
comprised  the  battle  of  Austerlitz  and  the  campaign 
in  Prussia  and  Poland  the  Emperor  was  little  in 
France,  but  on  his  return  to  Paris  and  later  at 
Fontainebleau  she  saw  her  opportunity  and  seized 
it.  She  was  so  lodged  that  she  could  easily  reach 
the  Emperor  at  all  hours,  and  when  summoned  by 
him  immediately  hastened  to  obey.  She  never  at- 
tempted to  pose  as  a  favorite,  but  accepted  with 
modesty  her  role  of  occasional  mistress,  and  the 
Empress,  at  first  inclined  to  be  jealous,  was  quickly 


126 

reassured  by  Napoleon's  making  her  his  confidante 
The  Italian  retained  a  respectful  and  submissive 
attitude  towards  the  Empress,  and  remained  unpre- 
tentiously in  her  place.  She  was  accorded  the  entree 
of  the  drawing-room  reserved  for  the  ladies-in-wait- 
ing, but,  that  favor  bestowed,  Napoleon  did  not  pub- 
licly interest  himself  in  her  and  permitted  the  ladies 
of  the  palace  to  treat  her  as  they  pleased  and  shun 
her  if  they  chose  ;  their  hostility,  however,  was  of 
a  short  duration,  and  soon  several  of  them,  and  not 
the  least  haughty,  relented  sufficiently  to  admit  her 
into  their  circle.  Mme.  Gazzani  obtained  something 
more  substantial,  however,  from  her  relations  with 
tlie  Emperor  than  the  flatteries  of  the  court,  as  she 
secured  the  general  receivership  at  Evreau  for  her 
husband. 

After  the  imperial  divorce  Mme.  Gazzani  re- 
joined her  lord,  and  being  close  to  Navarre,  where 
Josephine  was  residing,  she  became  an  intimate  of 
the  household  to  which  she  was  strongly  attracted 
by  a  liaison  with  M.  de  Pourtales,  a  groom  of  the 
Empress'  household.  Her  intimacy  with  the  Em- 
peror terminated  at  Fontainebleau,  after  that  he 
only  saw  her  by  chance.  He  never  loved  her  and 
appears  never  to  have  talked  of  her,  but  she  wa8 
consoled  for  his  forgetfulness  by  the  success  in  life 
of  her  daughter,  Charlotte- Josephine-Eugenie-Claire, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  127 

self-styled  Baroness  de  Brentano,  who  made  a  brill 
iant  match  and  married  M.  Alfred  Mosselman,  by 
whom  she  had  a  daughter  who  married  M.  Eugene 
Le  Hon. 

Although  oblivious  of  Mme.  Gazzani,  Napoleon 
often  spoke  of  a  certain  Mile.  Guillebeau,  the 
daughter  of  a  bankrupt  banker,  who  was,  in  1808, 
appointed  to  assist  Mme.  Gazzani  as  reader.  Mile. 
Guillebeau's  mother  was  Irish  by  birth,  and  had 
three  daughters,  two  of  whom  were  grown  and  con- 
tributed to  the  family  income  by  dancing  and  play- 
ing the  tambourine  in  the  drawing-rooms  of  the 
nobility.  The  eldest  compassed  an  introduction  to 
the  Princess  Elisa,  who  assisted  her  to  make  a  good 
marriage,  and  the  younger,  who  the  gossips  affirmed 
had  not  been  cruel  either  to  Murat  or  Junot,  was 
clever  enough  to  secure  the  protection  of  Queen 
Hortense,  who  was  taken  with  her  pretty  face  and 
clever  dancing.  At  a  masquerade  ball,  given  by 
Caroline  at  the  Elysee,  Hortense,  who  was  to  lead  a 
costumed  quadrille,  took  a  fancy  to  dress  Mile. 
Guillebeau  as  Folly,  and  to  have  her,  tambourine 
in  hand,  lead  the  procession  of  her  maidens  into  the 
ball-room.  Caroline  had  double  reasons  for  jeal- 
ousy, and  as  soon  as  she  perceived  Mile.  Guillebeau 
she  rushed  to  Hortense's  side  and  a  lively  scene 
ensued,  which  resulted  in  Folly's  dismissal  from  the 


128  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

ball-room.  This  was  an  episode  in  the  continual 
warfare  which  raged  between  the  Bonapartes  and 
the  Beauharnais,  and  to  avenge  both  herself  and 
her  favorite,  Hortense  presented  Mile.  Guillebeau 
to  her  mother,  who,  to  annoy  Caroline,  attached  the 
girl  to  herself  in  the  position  of  reader. 

This  incident  occurred  just  previous  to  the  journey- 
to  Bayonne,  and  when  the  imperial  household  was 
installed  at  Marrac,  Mile.  Guillebeau  found  herself 
in  an  isolated  position  ;  court  etiquette  closed  the 
door  of  the  drawing-room  against  her  during  the 
day,  and  she  only  entered  it  occasionally  of  an  even- 
ing in  order  to  entertain  the  company  with  her 
music  and  dancing,  and  was  therefore  reduced  to 
passing  most  of  the  time  in  her  bedroom,  which  was 
in  reality  nothing  better  than  a  garret,  for  the 
chateau  of  Marrac  was  small,  and  had  not  been  con- 
structed with  a  view  to  lodging  an  imperial  house- 
hold. Being  a  great  coquette,  the  girl  was  fearfully 
bored,  and  was  well  content  when  a  servant — a 
Mamaluke — tapped  at  her  door  and  announced  an 
imperial  visit.  Matters  were  progressing  quite  to 
her  taste  when  Lavallette,  who,  by  right  of  his  po- 
sition of  postmaster-general,  watched  the  corre- 
spondence of  the  household,  sent  Napoleon  a  letter 
written  to  Mile.  Guillebeau  by  her  mother,  in  which 
she  had  clearly  traced  the  role  her  daughter  had  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  129 

play,  and  recommended  her  to  lose  no  occasion  to 
make  herself  agreeable  to  His  Majesty,  and  to 
strengthen  his  fancy  for  her  to  the  utmost ;  point- 
ing out  to  the  girl  how  greatly  to  her  interest  it 
was  to  follow  this  course,  and  how  she  could  profit 
by  the  imperial  weakness.  Napoleon  was  so  dis- 
gusted with  the  lowness  of  the  intrigue,  in  which  he 
afterwards  discovered  that  Prince  de  Benevant  was 
implicated,  that  he  immediately  commanded  a  post 
chaise  for  mademoiselle,  and  she  was  packed  off  to 
Paris  escorted  only  by  a  valet. 

Mile.  Guillebeau  met  and  married  a  M.  Sourdeau 
who,  thanks  to  the  Emperor,  was  given  a  receiver- 
ship, but  he  appropriated  the  funds  and  prison 
stared  him  in  the  face  when  the  restoration  occurred 
and  proved  his  salvation.  Mme.  Sourdeau  was 
clever  enough  to  secure  an  introduction  to  the  Duke 
de  Berry,  who  found  her  u  charming  and  possessed 
of  the  most  beautiful  eyes  in  the  world,"  and  as  a 
recompense  for  favors  received  appointed  her  hus- 
band consul  at  Tangier. 

In  the  life  of   Napoleon,   these  passing  fancies 

count  for  little  ;  they  barely  appealed  to  his  senses, 

never  touched  his  heart ;  they  give  us  no  insight  to 

the  active  side  of  his  nature,  but  demonstrate  his 

hatred  of  intrigue,  his  generosity  and  certain  of  his 

habits.     It  would  be  easy  to  relate  many  adven- 
0 


ISO  i  "'  i  i:    -\  "■"    hi  sc  \\D. 

tun  ••;  of  the  :.iim  kind,  hul  none  inoiv  int.  n  1 !  n :  ■ 
tales  ,,f  garrison  adventures  for  which,  as  Kmporor, 
ho  paid  two  hundred  napo Icons  where  Dim  of  his 
captains  would  ha\  o  paid  Iwml  \  francs  ;  h.  w ., 
not  const  Muled  differently  Mian  his  man  hals  and 
his  soldiers  ;  he  was  a  man.  hul  ho  was  not  a  man 
whoso  senses  wcn»  so  imperious  Hint  he  was  always 
forced  to  \  iold  to  1  hem. 

\1   Vienna  he   ohser\ ed  a  yountf  ;;irl,  who.  on  her 

side,  was  apparently  infatuated  with  him  ;  he  had 

her  followed,  and  invited  her  lo  visit  him  in  (he 
evening  at  Sohoonhrunn  ;  she  accepted,  and  as  she 
spoke  only  Italian  and  (ierman  tliey  conversed  in 
the  former  lan-ua^e.  Napoleon  discovered  almost 
immediately  that  the  :;ul  holoiitfod  to  a  most  re 
speotahle  lantih  and  did  not  coinpreliend  in  the  least 
what  the  invitation  to  meet  him  implied,  and  that 
while  she  felt  a  passionate  admiration  for  him  it 
was  ingenuous  and  innocent,;  ho  ordered  that  she 
should  he  immediately  reconducted  to  her  home,  and 
provided  for  her  future,  :;i\  in:;-  her  a  dot  of  twentx 
thousand  florins.  , 

Tins  act   was  far  from  heim:  unique  in  Napoleon's 
Isfory,  it    w.is  repeated    three  times   at  least    in  his 
life  ;  on  tlu>  last  occasion  at  Saint   Helena. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  131 


CHAPTER  X. 

JOSEPHINE'S  CORONATION. 

In  the  idleness  and  disquietude  of  her  daily  life, 
which  resembled  closely  that  of  an  aged  sultana, 
Josephine  had  ample  leisure  for  reflection,  and  the 
outgrowth  of  her  continual  agitation,  anxiety  and 
jealousy  was- the  knowledge  that  by  one  thing  only 
could  her  position  be  secured — the  birth  of  a  child. 
Without  understanding  Napoleon's  ambitious  pro- 
jects, she  yet  knew  that  he  had  a  consuming  desire 
for  male  issue,  and,  as  his  fortunes  rose,  gradually 
comprehended  why  he  so  desired  an  heir,  and 
realized  that  for  her  maternity  should  no  longer 
be  a  pretext  for  obtaining  favors  in  the  shape  of 
journeys  which  gave  her  relaxation  from  the  monot- 
onous life  at  the  Tuileries — but  an  aim  ;  that  the 
throne  of  which  her  husband  was  slowly  climbing 
the  steps  should  have  an  assured  heir. 

To  Bonaparte,  chief  of  a  republic,  Bonaparte  re- 
establishing the  Bourbons  and  content  with  a  life- 
long place  of  honor  under  the  restored  monarchy,  a 


132  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

son  was  not  indispensable,  but,  unfortunately  for 
Josephine,  the  contingent  glory  of  a  role  a  la  Monk 
did  not  tempt  him,  nor  the  disinterestedness  of  a 
life  like  Washington's  satisfy  him.  A  great  flood 
of  opinion,  one  of  those  popular  currents  which 
nothing  stems,  swept  all  obstacles  from  his  path  and 
raised  him  first  to  a  consulate  which  was  republican, 
later  to  one  which  was  autocratic  and  differed  from 
a  monarchy  only  in  name,  and  above  all  in  the  in- 
solvable  question  of  heredity. 

Around  this  question  of  heredity  surged  the 
ambitions  of  some  and  the  projects  of  others.  Jose- 
phine saw  that  Bonaparte's  brothers  already  aspired 
to  the  succession ;  that  the  sisters  debated  whether 
their  husbands,  too,  might  not  have  a  chance, 
and  that  the  nation  itself  desired,  after  so  much 
turbulence,  a  government  that  would  endure  more 
than  a  lifetime  ;  but  if  a  monarchal  form  of  govern- 
ment was  established,  who  was  to  succeed  Napoleon  % 
There  were  the  Consul's  brothers,  but  by  what  right 
could  they  be  called  to  the  throne  ?  An  hereditary 
monarchy  in  its  Christian  form  is  a  derivative  of 
the  Hebrew  form  of  government,  and  is  supposedly 
a  divine  institution,  but  it  applies  exclusively  to  the 
chief  of  a  dynasty  and  his  descendants,  however  far 
removed,  provided  that  they  are  male  and  descended 
in  direct  line  from  him.     In  order  that  Napoleon's 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       133 

brothers  should  succeed  him  it  would  have  been 
necessary  to  have  recourse  to  an  expedient,  common 
enough  with  the  ancients,  and  proclaim  that  the 
late  Charles  de  Buonaparte  had  been  emperor  of 
France,  but  it  was  unlikely  that  the  country  would 
accept  such  a  fiction. 

Another  expedient  was  to  abandon  the  Hebraic 
law  of  succession  and  institute  the  Koman  law  of 
adoption ;  under  that  regime  the  Consul  would  be 
free  to  choose  as  his  successor  whomsoever  he  judged 
best  fitted  to  .fill  his  place ;  but  it  was  a  question 
whether  the  nation  would  overcome  its  prejudice  in 
favor  of  the  old  monarchal  system  and  accept  such 
a  solution  of  the  problem.  The  simplest,  most 
natural  solution,  which  would  both  annihilate  the 
ambitions  and  please  the  populace,  was  the  birth  of 
a  son  to  Napoleon. 

In  her  anxiety  to  give  to  her  husband  the  heir 
so  ardently  desired  Josephine  visited  innumerable 
mineral  springs  whose  waters  were  supposed  to  cure 
sterility,  consulted  various  physicians  and  submitted 
heroically  to  any  treatment  recommended,  made 
pilgrimages,  and  even  had  recourse  to  sorcerers ; 
whenever  she  had  the  least  ground  for  believing 
l^erself  with  child  she  immediately  made  Bonaparte 
a  sharer  in  her  joyous  hopes,  and  he  in  turn  confided 
his  happiness  to  his  intimates ;  as  each  hope  died 


134 

Napoleon  became  more  and  more  morose,  and 
indulged  in  hard  and  bitter  speeches  which  attested 
his  disappointment.  Once  at  Malmaison,  he  decided 
to  get  up  a  hunt  in  the  park,  when  Mme.  Bonaparte 
came  to  him  weeping  and  said  :  "  How  can  you 
think  of  hunting  in  the  park  when  all  our  animals 
are  with  young  ? "  at  which  he  retorted  in  a  loud 
voice :  "  Well,  then,  I  suppose  it  must  be  abandoned; 
everything  here  seems  to  be  prolific  except  the  mis- 
tress 8 " 

Publicly  he  threw  all  the  blame  for  their  child- 
lessness upon  his  wife ;  but  recalling  Mme.  Foures 
and  many  others,  none  of  whom  had  borne  him 
children,  he  entertained  secret  doubts  of  the  justice 
of  the  aspersion  he  cast  upon  her ;  doubts  which 
Josephine  stimulated  by  talking  incessantly  of  her 
children,  and  by  forcing  Eugene  and  Hortense  con- 
stantly upon  his  notice  ;  she  harped  so  much  upon 
the  subject  that  Mme.  Bacciochi  lost  all  patience, 
and  one  day  silenced  her  by  remarking :  "  There 
may  be  something  in  what  you  say,  but  remember, 
sister,  when  those  children  saw  the  light  you  were 
much  younger  than  you  are  now  !  " 

The  majority  of  the  family,  however,  were  pre- 
vailed upon  to  accept  her  view  of  the  situation,  and 
Napoleon  himself  did  not  combat  it  vigorously. 
On  several  occasions  he  said  to  his  brother  Joseph  : 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  135 

"I  am  childless,  you  all  think  me  impotent,  and 
Josephine,  despite  her  anxiety,  is  not  likely  to  bear 
children  now  ;  so  after  me  the  deluge  ! " 

When,  on  his  return  from  Spain,  Lucien  preached 
divorce,  and  suggested  the  advisability  of  a  marriage 
with  an  Infanta,  Napoleon  rejected  the  proposition  ; 
undoubtedly  he  had  diverse  motives  for  so  doing, 
but  possibly  the  strongest  of  all  was  of  a  personal 
and  private  nature ;  he  may  have  reasoned  that 
while  a  union  with  a  Bourbon  princess  would  un- 
questionably further  his  ambitious  schemes,  it  was 
foolish  to  struggle  for  a  throne  if  unable  to  transmit 
his  name  and  glory  to  a  son. 

The  Spanish  union  was  nevertheless  urged  by 
Lucien,  for  whom  Josephine  had  but  scant  affection, 
remembering  that  he  had  been  the  first  advocate  of 
a  divorce,  and  from  that  time  she  made  no  further 
effort  to  conciliate  her  husband's  brothers,  but  did 
not  hesitate  to  report  any  story  which  might  injure 
them,  however  false,  nor  to  embellish  the  truth  ;  and 
she  was  not  sorry  when  a  rupture  finally  occurred. 
Napoleon  often  said  of  Josephine  that  "she  bears 
no  more  malice  than  a  pigeon,"  but  this  was  true 
only  when  her  personal  interests  were  not  at  stake. 

Although  the  doubt  which  she  had  inspired  in 
Napoleon  served  to  avert  a  divorce  in  1801,  Josephine 
knew  herself  to  be  at  the  mercy  of  chance  ;  it  was 


136  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

neither  the  actresses  whose  company  he  frequented, 
nor  the  ladies  of  the  court  whom  she  feared,  for  if 
one  of  them  happened  to  bear  a  child  she  reasoned 
that  Napoleon  could  not  be  assured  of  his  father- 
hood unless  a  striking  physical  resemblance  proved 
it ;  what  she  dreaded  was  a  liaison  similar  to  the 
one  with  Mme.  Foures,  for  a  child  born  under  such 
conditions  meant  the  shipwreck  of  all  her  hopes  and 
ambitions,  as  Bonaparte  had  reached  a  point  where 
he  felt  himself  upon  a  level  with  the  old  dynasties, 
and  knew  that  a  union  with  him  would  not  be  dis- 
dained by  the  purest  blood  of  France,  while  there 
was  no  lack  of  men  like  Talleyrand,  "  the  accursed 
limper,"  ready  to  tempt  him,  suggest  advantageous 
marriages  and  act  as  intermediary. 

In  default  of  a  child,  which  alone,  as  Napoleon 
himself  said,  "  could  insure  Josephine's  peace  of 
mind  and  put  a  stop  to  her  unceasing  jealousy," 
how  could  she  attach  herself  to  her  husband  so 
firmly  that  he  would  not  dream  of  breaking  the 
chain  ?  For  years  associated  with  him  in  his  public 
life,  received  everywhere  as  a  sovereign,  holding  her 
salon  at  the  Tuileries  or  at  Saint-Cloud,  obliged  by 
Napoleon  himself  to  take  precedence  over  all  other 
women,  even  above  his  mother  at  family  and  infor- 
mal gatherings,  presented  to  the  country  and  to 
Europe  as  the  first  lady  in  France,  she  could  not  be 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      137 

repudiated  without  a  scandal,  and  such  a  proceed- 
ing would  certainly  be  badly  received  by  the  public. 
She  had  been  the  medium  for  the  distribution  of 
too  many  favors,  had  exercised  her  influence  to  ob- 
tain too  many  pardons,  not  to  have  warm  and  faith- 
ful adherents  ;  but,  as  Napoleon's  popularity  grew 
and  his  power  increased,  the  worldly  prestige  of  his 
wife  diminished,  and  she  realized  more  and  more 
that  no  tie  could  bind  him  to  her  save  a  living  token 
of  their  union. 

Josephine  finally  conceived  a  most  ingenious  plan, 
namely,  to  constitute  a  heredity  by  persuading  Napo- 
leon to  adopt  his  nephew  and  her  grandson,  the  child 
of  Louis  Bonaparte  and  Hortense  de  Beauharnais  ; 
such  a  procedure  would  conciliate  all  factions,  sat- 
isfy the  Bonapartes,  because  the  heir-presumptive 
would  be  one  of  their  name,  and  assure  her  own 
future,  and  the  question  of  succession  would  then 
be  settled.  She  convinced  Napoleon  of  the  wisdom 
of  this  law  and  he  spoke  of  it  to  Louis  ;  but  Louis 
indignantly  refused  invoking  the  rights  of  his  brother 
Joseph  and  himself,  and  before  these  imaginary  and 
baseless  claims,  which  were  without  precedent  in 
history  and  totally  at  variance  with  the  monarchal 
doctrine,  Napoleon  gave  way  and  renounced  the  sole 
expedient  which  would  have  enabled  him  to  establish 
an  heredity  without  having  recourse  to  divorce. 


138      NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

Failing  to  achieve  the  adoption  of  her  grandson, 
Josephine  saw  no  other  means  of  consolidating  the 
tie  which  linked  her  to  Napoleon  and  his  fortunes, 
and  while  suffering  the  greatest  disquietude  she  was 
obliged  to  accept  the  situation  with  such  fortitude 
as  she  could  summon  to  her  aid. 

The  First  Consul  being  proclaimed  Emperor,  she 
naturally  became  Empress,  received  the  homage  of 
the  ministers  of  state  and  was  addressed  as  "  Your 
Majesty,"  and  after  the  triumphal  journey  from  Aix. 
la-Chapelle  to  Mayence,  after  the  cannons  of  the 
Invalides  had  announced  her  return  to  the  Parisians 
and, the  authorities  had  defiled  before  her  throne, 
her  position  seemed  assured,  and  a  divorce  highly 
improbable  ;  but  her  own  jealousy  nearly  occasioned 
the  dreaded  calamity. 

At  Saint- Cloud  she  observed  that  a  lady  who  had 
called  to  pay  her  respects,  left  the  apartment  sooner 
than  was  strictly  in  accordance  with  court  etiquette, 
and  having  long  suspected  an  undue  intimacy  be- 
tween this  lady  and  the  Emperor,  she  herself  left 
the  drawing-room  and  mounted  the  secret  stairway 
leading  to  the  private  apartment  in  the  entresol 
where  he  was  in  the  habit  of  receiving  fair  visitors, 
and,  recognizing  the  lady's  voice,  she  insisted  upon 
being  admitted  and  made  a  scene  which  provoked 
Napoleon  to  violent  anger.     As  a  result  he  declared 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  139 

himself  weary  of  such  espionage  and  determined  to 
end  it,  and  saying  that  he  should  follow  the  counsels 
of  his  friends  and  secure  a  divorce,  he  sent  for  Eu- 
gene to  arrange  the  details.  Eugene  arrived,  hut 
both  for  his  mother  and  himself  he  declined  all 
favors  or  any  pecuniary  assistance  ;  thus  several 
days  passed,  Eugene  remained  unapproachable, 
while  Josephine  did  not  recriminate,  but  wept  un- 
ceasingly, and  Napoleon's  resolution  weakened  be- 
fore her  tears  ;  moreover,  he  knew  himself  to  be  in 
the  wrong,  and  that  it  was  not  thus  so  grave  an  act 
should  be  accomplished,  and  a  final  conversation 
took  place  between  them.  "  I  have  not  the  courage, " 
said  he  at  its  close,  "to  carry  my  threat  into  execu- 
tion, and  if  you  will  only  be  affectionate  and  obe- 
dient I  shall  never  oblige  you  to  leave  me,  but  I  will 
admit  that  I  wish  that  you  yourself  would  relieve 
me  from  the  embarrassment  of  our  present  rela- 
tions." 

Josephine,  however,  had  no  taste  for  self-sacrifice, 
and  did  not  propose  to  decide  her  fate,  Napoleon 
must  be  the  arbiter ;  she  was  ready  to  obey,  but  she 
intended  to  await  his  order  to  descend  the  steps  of 
the  throne  to  which  he  had  raised  her.  Influenced 
by  his  habits,  political  uncertainty,  the  hope  of  a 
possible  paternity,  affection  for  his  stepchildren,  the 
necessity  of  ruining  the  life  which  he  had  linked 


140  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

with  his,  of  renouncing  forever  the  woman  whom 
he  still  loved,  touched  by  the  resignation  of  the 
Beauharnais  family,  and  provoked  at  the  joy  mani- 
fested by  Josephine's  enemies,  Napoleon  once  more 
abandoned  the  idea  of  divorce,  and,  as  though  to  pre- 
vent its  return,  commanded  his  wife  to  give  serious 
attention  to  the  preparations  for  his  coronation,  in 
which  she  should  be  associated. 

Certainly  Josephine  should  have  been  content ; 
her  most  ambitious  dreams  could  never  have 
reached  this  height ;  she,  the  Creole,  who  had  been 
brought  to  France  owing  to  the  caprice  of  a  courtesan, 
was  to  realize  the  ambitious  dreams  of  past  queens 
of  France,  be  crowned  by  the  Pope,  and  participate 
in  the  triumphs  of  the  new  Charlemagne. 

She  was,  however,  desirous  of  forging  still  another 
link  in  the  chain  which  bound  Napoleon  to  her. 
For  eight  years  she  had  been  perfectly  content  with 
the  civil  ceremony,  which  alone  cemented  their 
union,  but  it  now  occurred  to  her  that  the  benison 
of  the  Church  would  lend  additional  strength  to 
her  position.  She  did  not  ignore*  the  fact  that  she 
would  have  great  obstacles  to  surmount  before  over- 
coming. Napoleon's  objections  to  such  a  step ;  she 
knew  he  would  argue  that,  as  the  ceremony  had  not 
already  taken  place,  it  was  useless  to  call  public 
attention  to  its  omission,  that  the  greater  number 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  141 

of  the  men  who  surrounded  him  were  in  the  same 
position  as  himself,  and  that  by  setting  them  such 
an  example  he  would  cause  numerous  acts  of  re- 
habilitation, which  would  appear  to  be  in  opposition 
to  extant  civil  laws,  and  would  seemingly  indicate 
that  the  head  of  the  government  did  not  acknowl- 
edge the  validity  of  the  only  mode  of  marriage 
which  the  state  recognized,  that  he  would  find  no 
lack  of  reasons  to  advance  for  his  refusal,  any  of 
which  might  mask  a  furtive  one.  Napoleon  knew 
that  the  Church  is  accommodating,  when  she  has  to 
deal  with  the  powerful  ones  of  earth,  and  that  when 
it  is  advisable  she  will  cut  a  knot  which  she  had 
tied,  but  he  felt  that  if  later  he  was  constrained 
to  sunder  his  marriage  relations  he  would  prefer 
being  free  to  act  for  himself  and  not  be  under  obliga- 
tions to  the  Holy  See. 

Josephine  divined  all  this,  and  was  fully  alive  to 
the  fact  that  she  had  nothing  to  gain  by  appealing 
to  Napoleon,  and  had  no  valid  reasons  to  advance 
for  the  religious  solemnization  of  their  union  ;  she 
knew,  too,  that  to  assign  conscientious  scruples  as 
her  motive  would  give  not  only  Napoleon,  but  the 
whole  court,  cause  for  mirth  :  but  the  Pope  would 
not  laugh  at  her. 

For  several  years  she  had  been  in  correspondence 
with  Pius  VII.  and  quietly  paving  the  way  for  a 


142  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

religious  marriage,  so  when  the  Pope  called  on  her 
at  Fontainebleau,  she  confessed  that  her  union  with 
Bonaparte  had  not  received  the  sanction  of  the 
Church,  and  the  Holy  Father,  after  felicitating  her 
upon  her  commendable  desire  to  obey  the  laws  of 
the  Church,  promised  to  insist  upon  the  Sacrament. 
Thus  Napoleon's  hand  was  forced,  for  the  Pope  was 
quite  capable  of  postponing  the  coronation  if  he 
postponed  the  marriage  ;  to  refuse  to  anoint  the 
Emperor,  if  Napoleon  refused  to  obey  the  canons  of 
the  Church.  The  ceremony  had  already  been  thrice 
adjourned,  and  each  postponement  entailed  immense 
expenditures,  gave  rise  to  discontent  among  the 
people,  and  provoked  distrust.  Paris  was  filled  to 
overflowing  with  civil  and  military  deputations,  it 
would  have  created  an  awful  scandal  if  the  Pope, 
who  had  come  to  Paris  solely  to  anoint  and  crown 
the  Emperor,  returned  to  Eome  without  having 
performed  the  ceremony ;  it  was  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  yield,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  9th 
December,  Cardinal  Fesch  pronounced  the  nuptial 
benediction. 

If  ever  a  marriage  was  forced  that  one  was,  and 
later  Napoleon  could  truthfully  affirm  that  undue 
influence  had  been  brought  to  bear  upon  him,  that 
his  consent  having  been  unfairly  obtained  the  mar- 
riage was,  according  to  the  canons  of  the  Church, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  14S 

null  and  void  ;  but  this  Josephine  could  not  foresee, 
and  married  by  a  Cardinal,  anointed  by  a  Pope  and 
crowned  by  the  Emperor,  she  fondly  believed  her 
position  unassailable. 


144  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  XL 

MADAME    ****. 

Napoleon  would  not  have  been  the  man  he  was 
had  he  never  felt  the  need  of  a  love  not  purely  ani- 
mal, of  a  friendship  which  should  satisfy  the  senti- 
mental and  intellectual  side  of  his  nature  as  well  as 
the  physical,  and  as  he  advanced  in  years  and  his 
position  isolated  him  more  and  more  from  ordinary 
mortals,  the  longing  for  sympathetic  companion- 
ship grew  upon  him. 

During  the  early  days  of  the  consulate  this  long- 
ing was  but  faintly  felt,  but  as  the  fires  of  youth 
burned  down  his  intellectual  nature  assumed  the 
ascendency,  and  we  find  ourselves  in  the  presence  of 
a  new  Napoleon,  a  man  prone  to  periods  of  melan- 
choly, possessed  by  a  feverish  desire  to  be  under- 
stood, and  as  apt  to  indulge  in  dreams  of  an  ideal 
affection  as  in  ambitious  ones,  a  man  delicately 
tender,  who  found  for  the  expression  of  his  senti- 
ments language  suitable  for  a  hero  of  romance. 
As  Napoleon  has  not  previously  been  presented  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      145 

the  world  in  this  light  one  feels  some  hesitancy  in 
so  doing,  but  the  proofs  that  his  character  did  thus 
change,  though  covering  a  somewhat  later  period 
of  his  life,  are  still  sufficiently  authentic  to  warrant 
the  assertion. 

The  women  to  whom  Napoleon  addressed  himself 
at  this  time  were  no  longer  actresses  and  adven- 
turesses, who  made  capital  out  of  their  relations  with 
him,  but  women  of  the  world  who  had  husbands  to 
deceive  and  reputations  to  consider,  who  were  cau- 
tious in  their  indiscretions,  destroyed  all  proof  of 
their  relations  with  the  Emperor,  and  whose  descend- 
ants carefully  guarded  the  secret,  while  those  who 
were  indiscreet  enough  to  gossip  about  these  ladies 
took  good  care  to  disguise  their  names  ;  even  at 
this  late  day  he  who  lifts  the  light  veil  which  con- 
ceals their  identity  would  be  most  discourteous  ; 
moreover,  one  cannot  be  positive  that  the  veil  screens 
but  one  woman.  Naturally  one  can  identify  certain 
traits  of  person  and  character,  particularly  when 
retaining  from  childhood  a  strong  and  clear  impres- 
sion of  a  certain  face,  but  such  proofs  are  not  doc- 
umentary, and  even  at  the  risk  of  being  obscure  and 
leaving  some  points  unexplained,  one  must  proceed 
with  the  greatest  caution.  There  was  at  the  con- 
sular court  a  young  woman  of  twenty,  wedded  to  a 

man  thirty  years  her  senior.     The  husband  was  a 
10 


146  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

most  respectable  person,  a  great  worker,  and  left 
the  best  of  reputations  behind  him  ;  he  was  one  of 
those  faithful  servants  of  the  state  of  whom  the  old 
regime  made  head  clerks,  and  the  new,  general 
\/  directors  ;  he  possessed  wonderful  ability  as  a  finan- 
cier, and  it  was  he  who  organized  and  directed  a 
financial  institution  which  is  conducted  to-day  upon 
the  same  lines  that  he  laid  down.  The  wife  was 
charming,  graceful  and  amiable  ;  her  features  were 
irregular,  but  her  face  was  rendered  remarkable  by 
an  extremely  winning  smile  and  the  thoughtful 
expression  of  her  dark  blue  eyes — eyes  which,  it  must 
be  admitted,  were  somewhat  deceptive,  as  they  ex- 
pressed whatever  their  mistress  willed  ;  her  hands 
and  feet  were  marvellously  small  and  beautiful,  she 
danced  like  a  fairy,  sang  like  an  artist,  played  the 
harp  like  a  virtuoso,  was  an  excellent  listener,  and 
did  not  display  unduly  her  most  remarkable  intel- 
ligence. This  lady  lacked  neither  a  strong  will, 
worldly  wisdom,  ambition  nor  unscrupulousness, 
but  she  concealed  her  real  hardness  by  a  suave 
manner  which  enhanced  her  beauty,  and,  though  of 
bourgeoise  origin,  she  understood  the  art  of  polite- 
ness better  than  many  a  high-born  dame,  and  in- 
stinctively comprehended  the  requirements  of  good 
society  (a  knowledge  which  must  be  innate  and 
cannot  be  acquired)  ;  and  she  carried  herself  with 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      147 

as  haughty  and  disdainful  an  air  as  if  she  had  been 
born  in  the  purple  rather  than  of  middle-class 
provincials.  According  to  certain  authorities  it 
was  in  November,  1803,  that  Napoleon  fell  in  love 
with  Mme.  ****;  but  the  affair  with  the  woman 
whom  Josephine  surprised  in  the  orangery  at  Saint- 
Cloud  seems  to  destroy  this  hypothesis,  and  it  is 
more  likely  that  Napoleon  paid  his  -first  addresses 
to  Mme.  *  *  *  *3  about  nine  months  later,  in  August, 
1804.  The  child  which  was  born  to  Mme.  *  *  *  *  dur- 
ing that  year  resembled  Bonaparte  neither  in  mind 
nor  feature,  a  fact  which,  though  it  inspired  Napo- 
leon with  some  doubt  as  to  its  parentage,  was  a 
safeguard  to  the  wife  and  confirmed  her  husband's 
faith  in  her.  It  is  not  uncommon,  however,  for 
features  as  characteristic  as  those  of  the  Bonapartes 
to  skip  one  generation  and  appear,  strongly  devel- 
oped, in  a  second,  and  it  was  such  a  manifestation, 
occurring  a  generation  later  in  this  family,  which 
revealed  a  connection  which  up  to  that  moment 
had  been  kept  fairly  secret.  Was  the  lady  at  Saint- 
Cloud  the  person  who,  towards  the  end  of  the  con- 
sulate, frequented  a  little  house  in  the  Allee  des 
Veuves  where  Napoleon  also  went  secretly  ?  Was 
she  the  same  woman  whom  Napoleon,  disguised 
and  alone,  visited  by  night  at  her  own  house  in 
Paris  ?    It  is  impossible  to  say.     The  adventure  at 


148  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

Saint-Cloud  seems  to  have  been  one  of  those  transi- 
tory amours  which  endure  but  a  day  ;  nocturnal 
and  secret  excursions  on  the  part  of  a  man  who 
was  ordinarily  such  a  stay-at-home  as  Napoleon, 
demonstrate  however,  an  irresistible  attraction 
of  which  there  are  few  instances  in  his  career. 
There  is  some  uncertainty  regarding  the  identity  of 
..-  several  of  the  women  who  played  a  part  in  Napo- 
leon's life  about  that  time  which,  for  the  moment, 
it  is  not  advisable  to  clear  up,  and  about  which, 
memorialists  and  their  editors  have  been  careful 
not  to  enlighten  us,  out  of  consideration  for  the 
woman  about  whose  memory  they  surge,  and  above 
all,  for  her  descendants  ;  nevertheless,  there  are  cer- 
tain facts  regarding  which  all  witnesses  agree,  and 
which,  though  not  positive  proof,  are  the  strongest 
sort  of  circumstantial  evidence  and  permit  us  to 
fathom  the  mystery  with  which  these  ladies  sur- 
round themselves  and  to  divine  their  names. 

A  few  days  before  the  arrival  of  the  Pope  for  the 
coronation,  Napoleon,  with  his  whole  court,  pro- 
ceeded to  Fontainebleau,  and  his  retinue  were  not 
slow  to  perceive  that  he  appeared  unusually  serene 
and  approachable.  One  evening,  after  the  Pope 
had  retired  to  his  apartments,  the  Emperor  re- 
mained with  the  Empress,  chatting  with  her  ladies- 
in-waiting  ;   this  proceeding  did  not  strike  Jose- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  149 

phine  as  natural ;  her  jealousy  was  awakened,  and 
she  began  to  search  for  proof  of  a  new  intrigue  ; 
not  knowing  exactly  whom  to  suspect,  she  pounced 
upon  Mine.  Ney,  who  denied  emphatically  to  Hor- 
tense,  her  old  schoolfellow  at  Mme.  Campan's,  that 
the  Emperor  was  in  any  way  interested  in  her,  but 
asserted  that  he  was  simply  curious  about  one  of 
the  ladies  of  the  court  whom  Eugene  de  Beauhar- 
nais  found  quite  to  his  taste.  Eugene  was  but  a 
screen  ;  the  lady  accepted  his  attentions  and  appeared 
to  take  pleasure  in  his  society  solely  to  avert  sus- 
picion ;  she  was  intimate  with  Caroline  Murat,  who 
lent  her  assistance  to  the  intrigue  in  order  to  spite 
Josephine,  as  she  did  in  many  other  instances. 

No  definite  understanding  had  been  arrived  at 
when  the  court  returned  to  Paris,  but  Napoleon  was 
captivated  by  the  lady's  charms  ;  he  was  loath  to 
leave  the  Empress'  apartments  when  she  was  on 
duty,  and  was  always  ready  to  join  Josephine 
at  the  theatre  if  that  lady  accompanied  her  ;  and, 
though  ordinarily  he  objected  to  his  wife's  going  to 
the  play  except  in  state,  he  was  then  ready  to 
organize  little  theatre  parties,  provided  always  that 
Madame  ****  was  of  the  company.  Josephine 
grew  more  and  more  uneasy  and  attempted  to 
remonstrate,  but  her  remonstrances  were  so  ill  re- 
ceived that  she  dared  not  insist,  and  although  pub- 


s 


150      NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

licly  Napoleon  seemed  more  affable  and  frank  than 
ever  before,  in  reality,  unless  a  certain  lady  was 
present,  his  temper  was  irritable  and  uncertain. 
"  Bonaparte  makes  me  a  daily  and  reasonless 
scene,"  Josephine  wrote  a  friend  about  that  time  ; 
"  he  is  unbearable. n 

About  that  time  Napoleon  was  seized  with  a  vio- 
lent fancy  for  playing  cards  in  the  evening,  and  in- 
variably called  his  sister  Caroline  and  two  ladies  of 
the  palace,  one  of  whom  was  the  object  of  his  affec- 
tion, to  be  his  partners.  He  played  badly,  giving 
but  scant  attention  to  the  game,  which  indeed 
served  only  as  an  excuse  for  remaining  in  the  society 
of  the  woman  he  so  admired,  and  procured  him  an 
opportunity  to  gaze  upon  her  and  to  ponder  over 
the  charms  of  an  ideal  and  platonic  love ;  without 
mentioning  names  he  frequently  indulged  upon 
these  occasions  in  long  and  vehement  tirades  against 
jealousy  and  jealous  women  ;  and  poor  Josephine, 
drearily  playing  whist  with  court  dignitaries,  was 
forced  to  listen  to  the  invectives  which,  uttered  in 
his  sonorous  voice,  rang  out  in  the  respectful 
silence  of  the  room  and  were  plainly  audible  to  all. 

At  a  fete  given  by  the  minister  of  war,  in  honor 
of  the  coronation,  the  women,  in  accordance  with 
the  usage  of  the  day,  were  alone  seated  at  supper, 
the  Empress  with  several  of  her  ladies  and  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  151 

wives  of  state  dignitaries  occupying  the  table  of 
honor.  Napoleon  refused  to  seat  himself  but  walked 
about,  chatting  with  various  ladies  in  an  unusually 
gracious  and  affable  manner ;  he  was  assiduous  in 
his  attentions  to  Josephine,  and  taking  a  plate  from 
the  hands  of  a  page  served  her  himself.  When  he 
fancied  that  he  had  manoeuvred  enough  and  had 
been  sufficiently  polite  to  the  company  in  general, 
he  approached  Madame  *  *  *  *  and  engaged  in  con- 
versation with  her  neighbor,  gradually  including 
his  charmer,  and,  perceiving  that  she  wished  some 
olives  which  were  set  upon  the  table  at  a  little 
distance,  he  fetched  them  to  her,  saying  :  "  You  do 
wrong  to  eat  olives  at  night,  they  will  make  you 
ill,"  then,  turning  to  the  other  lady,  he  added,  ■ '  and 
you,  madame,  do  well  not  to  eat  them,  above  all  you 
are  wise  not  to  imitate  Madame  *  *  *  *  for  in  all 
things  she  is  inimitable." 

The  Emperor's  stratagem  did  not  impose  upon 
Josephine,  whom  nothing  escaped,  and  who,  in  the 
middle  of  the  winter,  had  been  obliged  to  yield  to  a 
sudden  fancy  of  his  and  go  to  Malmaison,  a  journey 
which  had  upset  all  her  plans  and  made  every  one 
excessively  uncomfortable,  for  the  visit  had  been  so 
suddenly  undertaken  that  there  had  been  no  time  to 
light  the  fires,  and  the  first  night  was  spent  in  a 
veritable  icehouse  ;  the  cold,  however,  had  mattered 


152  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

very  little  to  Napoleon  who  made  a  nocturnal  visit 
which  he  nattered  himself  had  been  unobserved, 
little  suspecting  that  Josephine,  after  a  long  station 
behind  a  glass  door,  had  learned  his  secret. 

After  the  ministerial  fete,  the  court  returned  to 
Malmaison,  and  the  following  morning  the  Empress 
summoned  to  her  presence  the  lady  who  had  not 
partaken  of  olives,  and  after  an  aimless  conversa- 
tion, abruptly  asked  what  the  Emperor  had  said  to 
her  on  the  previous  evening,  then,  what  he  had 
said  to  Madame  *  *  *  *.  The  lady  answered  that  His 
Majesty  advised  Madame  ****  not  to  eat  olives  ; 
"  Ah,"  exclaimed  the  Empress, "  while  he  was  giving 
her  such  good  advice  he  might  have  told  her  that  it  is 
ridiculous  for  a  woman  with  such  a  long  nose  to  essay 
the  role  of  Eoxelane ; "  then,  taking  a  book  from 
the  chimney-piece,  she  added  :  "  Here  is  the  book 
which  is  turning  the  heads  of  all  the  blonde  and  thin 
young  women."  The  volume  in  question  was  Mme. 
de  Genlis'  novel,  "la  Duchesse  de  La  Valliere,"  and 
the  Empress'  sarcasm  was  not  idle,  for  the  romance 
was  to  be  found  in  the  room  of  every  lady-in-wait- 
ing ;  the  book  had  the  enormous  sale  of  ten  editions, 
and  doubtless  the  fact  that  many  aspired  to  a  posi- 
tion similar  to  La  Valliere's  had  not  been  detrimen- 
tal to  its  success. 

The  Emperor  had  no  intention  of  installing  a 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  153 

favorite.  "  I  do  not  wish  women  to  govern  in  my 
court,"  he  said  upon  one  occasion,  "  their  influence 
was  harmful  to  Henri  IV  and  Louis  XIV,  my  mis- 
sion is  more  important  than  theirs  was,  and  the 
French  have  become  too  serious  to  pardon  scanda- 
lous liaisons  of  their  sovereigns. "  His  real  mistress, 
as  he  often  said,  was  power,  and  he  had  worked  too 
hard  to  attain  it,  to  permit  of  its  being  stolen  or  even 
coveted.  Madame  *  *  *  *  who  was  both  very  astute 
and  very  intelligently  advised,  asked  nothing  for  her- 
self, indeed,  she  was  not  able  to  accept  many  favors, 
as  they  might  have  roused  the  suspicions  of  her 
husband,  who  was  far  from  being  indifferent  to  his 
wife's  good  name  and  conduct ;  the  most  that  she 
was  able  to  secure  individually  was  a  position  as 
lady-in-waiting,  an  appointment  which  was  war- 
ranted  neither  by  her  position,  birth  or  anything  in 
the  past  which  had  endeared  her  to  Bonaparte,  and 
which  caused  some  gossip  and  many  malicious 
smiles ;  but  little  as  her  relations  advantaged  her 
personally,  she  profited  by  them  to  advance  the  in- 
terests of  others  and  her  one  time  protectors  became 
her  proteges. 

Murat,  already  marshal  of  the  Empire,  was  pro- 
moted to  the  dignity  of  a  prince  and  made  admiral- 
in-chief,  which  classed  him,  after  Cambaceres  and 
Lebrun,  among  the  serene  highnesses;  but  at  the 


154  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

same  time  and  of  his  own  accord  the  Emperor 
named  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  prince  and  arch-chan- 
cellor of  state,  thus  placing  him  upon  the  same 
level  as  Murat,  and  establishing  the  balance  be- 
tween the  Bonapartes  and  the  Beauharnais,  inclining 
it  even  in  favor  of  the  Beauharnais.  There  was  a 
marked  difference  in  the  terms  which  he  employed 
in  announcing  both  decisions  to  the  Senate,  and  he 
made  the  positions  which  his  brother-in-law  and  his 
stepson  held  in  his  affections  most  evident ;  on  the 
one  hand  it  was  clear  that  he  yielded  to  outside 
pressure  and  the  solicitations  of  the  family,  on  the 
other,  that  he  gave  freely,  actuated  by  the  dictates 
of  his  own  heart :  "  In  the  midst  of  the  anxieties 
and  the  bitterness  inseparable  from  the  high  rank 
where  we  are  placed,  our  heart  has  felt  the  need  of 
affection  and  sincere  friendship,  and  its  wants  have 

been  gratified  by  this  child  of  our  adoption 

our  paternal  benediction  will  accompany  this  young 
prince  throughout  his  career  and,  seconded  by  Provi- 
dence, he  will  one  day  be  deserving  the  approbation 
of  posterity."  Such  was  the  speech  which  announced 
Eugene  de  Beauharnais'  aggrandizement  to  the 
senate  ;  and  he  had  asked  for  nothing,  expressed  no 
dissatisfaction  with  the  position  of  grand  officer  of 
the  Empire  and  colonel  of  chasseurs  which  had  pre- 
viously been  conferred  upon  him,  as  he  was  on  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  155 

way  to  Milan  at  the  head  of  the  mounted  guards. 
It  was  in  truth  a  fine  command,  and  it  was  a  strange 
error  on  the  part  of  Mme.  de  Remusat,  to  represent 
in  the  light  of  a  disgrace  the  greatest  favor  which 
the  Emperor  could  bestow  upon  a  general  of  twenty- 
three  years. 

At  all  events  this  disgrace,  which,  according  to 
her,  was  occasioned  by  an  access  of  jealousy  against 
Eugene,  was  of  singularly  short  duration,  for  he 
left  Paris  on  the  16th  of  January  in  obedience  to  an 
order  dated  on  the  14th  and  which  was  prompted  by 
the  necessity  for  the  appearance  of  the  guards  at  the 
coronation  at  Milan,  and  it  was  but  fifteen  days  later 
that  he  received  a  personal  letter  from  the  Emperor 
with  a  copy  of  the  message  to  the  senate  and  his 
nomination  as  prince  and  arch-chancellor  of  state. 

Nothing  could  prove  more  clearly  that  Napoleon 
was  drawn  closer  to  Josephine,  that  he  did  not  pro- 
pose to  be  led  by  any  one,  and  that  the  affection 
inspired  by  Madame  *  *  *  *  was  already  on  the  wane  : 
satiety  comes  soon  when  there  is  no  restraint.  It  was 
at  Malmaison  in  the  heart  of  winter  that  the  in- 
trigue culminated,  and  at  Malmaison,  ere  spring- 
flowers  had  blossomed,  that  the  chains  were  broken. 

It  was  while  the  court  was  enjoying  a  fortnight's 
sojourn  at  Malmaison,  during  which  Napoleon  en- 
joyed perfect  freedom,  and  could  walk,  talk  and 


156  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

enjoy  the  society  of  Madame  *  *  *  *  to  his  heart's 
content,  while  Josephine  mourned  and  pined  in  the 
seclusion  of  her  chamber,  that  the  final  rupture 
occurred.  One  morning  the  Emperor  went  to  his 
wife's  apartments  and  returning  to  his  old  confiden- 
tial manner,  admitted  that  he  had  been  very  much 
in  love  but  was  disillusioned,  and  finished  by  asking 
Josephine  to  aid  him  to  sunder  his  relations  with 
Madame  *  *  *  *  The  Empress  took  the  matter  in  hand 
and  summoned  the  lady,  who,  perfectly  mistress 
of  herself,  did  not  manifest  the  slightest  emotion 
and  opposed  to  the  Empress'  remarks  a  mute  disdain 
and  a  face  as  impassive  as  marble. 

Although  the  Emperor  never  renewed  his  alle- 
giance, Madame  *  *  *  *  always  remained  tenderly  at- 
tached to  him,  while  he  invariably  manifested  for  her 
the  greatest  consideration,  according  her  every  favor 
compatible  with  her  husband's  position,  and  desig- 
nating her  among  the  first  for  court  honors  and 
favors.  During  his  hours  of  trial  she  was  one  of 
his  most  faithful  adherents,  she  enhanced  the  f6tes 
of  the  hundred  days  with  her  beauty,  and  when, 
after  Waterloo,  the  vanquished  hero  was  about  to 
leave  his  country  forever,  Madame  *  *  *  *  was  one  of 
the  last  to  visit  Malmaison  and  offer  to  the  dethroned 
Emperor  the  tribute  of  her  respectful  attachment 
and  unalterable  devotion. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  167 


CHAPTER  XII. 

STEPHANIE  DE  BEAUHARNAIS. 

Prior  even  to  Austerlitz,  Napoleon  resolved  to 
establish  family  relations  between  his  house  and 
the  sovereign  houses  of  Europe  which  would  serve 
to  consolidate  political  alliances  ;  he  was  of  the  opin- 
ion that  his  government  would  never  be  firmly- 
established  in  Europe  until  the  blood  of  the  Napo- 
leons mingled  with  that  of  older  reigning  families, 
and  not  believing  himself  marriageable,  he  mobilized 
around  him  all  who  were,  boys  and  girls,  with  the 
view  of  strengthening  the  only  bond  to  which  he 
attached  any  value,  because  he  did  not  think  it  sub- 
ject to  political  hazards.  From  his  point  of  view 
nothing  was  more  binding,  even  to  princes,  than 
ties  of  blood. 

His  first  step,  on  returning  from  the  campaign, 
was  to  arrange  a  marriage  between  Eugene  de 
Beauharnais  and  the  Princess  Augusta  of  Bavaria  ; 
she  was  betrothed  to  the  Prince  of  Baden,  but  that 
was  of  no  importance,  Napoleon  finding  another 


158  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

wife  for  the  discarded  lover  in  the  person  of  Stepha- 
nie-Louise-Adrienne  de  Beauharnais,  the  daughter 
of  Claude  de  Beauharnais,  Count  of  Koches-Baritaud, 
and  of  Adrienne  de  Lezay-Marnesia  his  first  wife, 
and  cousin,  sixteen  degrees  removed,  to  Hortense 
and  Eugene. 

Stephanie  de  Beauharnais  was  born  at  Paris  on 
the  26th  of  August,  1789,  and,  losing  her  mother  at 
the  age  of  four  years,  spent  some  time  in  the  convent 
of  Panthemont;  a  certain  Lady  de  Bath,  an  old  friend 
of  her  mother's,  then  took  the  young  girl  under  her 
protection  and,  when  the  convents  were  closed,  con- 
fided her  ward  to  two  of  the  sisters,  Mmes.  de  Tre- 
lissac  and  de  Sabatier,  who  took  Stephanie  with  them, 
first  to  Castelsarrasin,  then  to  Perigueux  and  later 
to  Montauban.  Her  paternal  grandmother,  Fanny 
de  Beauharnais,  occupied  herself  at  Cubieres  with 
poetry  and  flirtations,  her  father  was  an  emigre, 
and  her  grandfather,  Marquis  de  Marnesia,  was 
travelling  in  America,  so  that,  save  for  the  kindness 
of  Lady  de  Bath,  the  child  would  have  been  left  to 
public  charity.  One  day,  in  the  beginning  of  the 
consulate,  Josephine  happened  to  speak  of  her  little 
cousin  before  her  husband,  and  Bonaparte,  who 
thought  so  much  of  ties  of  blood,  was  indignant  at 
his  wife  for  leaving  one  of  her  name  to  the  care  of 
a  stranger  and  an  Englishwoman.     He  immediately 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  159 

sent  for  the  child,  but  the  nuns  refused  to  deliver 
her  to  the  messenger,  whereupon  he  sent  a  courier 
armed  with  legal  authority  to  take  Stephanie  de 
Beauharnais,  and  the  sisters  were  forced  to  obey, 
though  not  without  tears  and  grave  misgivings. 
Upon  her  arrival  in  Paris  the  child  was  placed  with 
Mme.  Campan,  and  thenceforth  she  was  one  of  the 
little  group  of  young  girls  who  came  to  Malmaison 
each  decadi  (the  republican  day  of  rest),  and  whose 
white-robed  forms  and  cheery  laughter  enlivened 
the  park  as  they  flitted  about  under  the  shade  of 
the  great  chestnut  trees.  Both  Josephine  and  Hor- 
tense  were  extremely  kind  to  Stephanie,  but  she  did 
not  appear  on  gala  days,  had  no  rank,  was  of  no 
importance,  and  seemed  destined  to  such  a  marriage 
as  had  been  arranged  for  her  cousin  Emilie  de  Beau- 
harnais, Mme.  Lavallette  ;  the  little  lady,  however, 
did  not  take  that  view  of  the  situation,  but  assumed 
the  airs  of  a  princess  and  treated  those  of  her  relations 
who  were  not  honored  with  a  lodging  in  the  imperial 
palace  very  haughtily. 

Such  was  the  situation  when  Eugene  married  and 
it  became  necessary  to  provide  a  wife  for  the  Prince 
of  Baden  ;  Napoleon  first  thought  of  another  ward 
of  Josephine's,  her  niece,  Stephanie  Tascher,  but 
afterwards  decided  upon  Stephanie  de  Beauharnais, 
and  the  arrangements  for  the  marriage  were  defi- 


160  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

nitely  concluded  by  him  while  on  his  way  to  Carls- 
ruhe,  on  the  20th  of  January,  1806,  and  were  con- 
firmed by  an  agreement  signed  at  Paris  on  the  17th 
of  February. 

Stephanie  was  at  that  time  seventeen  years  of 
age,  was  clever,  bright  and  gay,  with  a  certain  child- 
ishness of  manner  which  was  very  taking  ;  she  had 
rather  a  pretty  face,  a  fine  complexion,  sparkling 
blue  eyes  and  beautiful  blonde  hair.  Upon  the  Em- 
peror's return  to  Paris  she  was  taken  from  her 
boarding-school  to  the  Tuileries  and  installed  in  an 
apartment  near  that  of  the  Empress  and  became  at 
once  the  life  of  the  palace  ;  gay,  piquant  and  agree- 
able, she  enlivened  the  dreary  salons,  and  not  being 
in  the  least  embarrassed  by  the  Emperor  she  indulged 
her  mischievousness  as  freely  in  his  presence  as  else- 
where, which  greatly  pleased  and  amused  him  ;  she 
was  not  long  in  perceiving  this  and  increased  her 
efforts  to  divert  him,  and  they  were  soon  engaged  in 
a  lively  flirtation.  Possibly  Napoleon  hoped  for 
something  more,  but  Mile,  de  Beauharnais  was  not  so 
inclined  ;  she  only  wished  for  distraction  and  to  make 
the  most  of  Napoleon's  friendship  and  admiration 
without  compromising  herself  ;  she  was  well  aware 
that  it  was  not  because  she  was  Mile,  de  Beauharnais 
that  she  was  to  espouse  the  Prince  of  Baden,  but 
because  she  was  a  Napoleonite,  that  the  manner  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  161 

her  reception  by  the  prince's  family  depended  en- 
tirely upon  the  Emperor,  and  that  it  was  therefore 
prudent  to  find  out  how  much  he  would  do  for  her. 

Stephanie's  struggle  was  not  with  the  Empress, 
but  with  the  sisters  of  Napoleon,  who  had  no  inten- 
tion of  yielding  her  precedence,  and  who,  Caroline 
Murat  particularly,  snubbed  her  mercilessly,  but 
little  Stephanie  made  light  of  their  rudeness  and 
laughed  gayly  at  everything  until  Caroline,  exas- 
perated, became  insolent.  One  evening,  while  they 
were  waiting  for  the  Emperor,  Stephanie  seated 
herself  on  a  folding  chair,  upon  which  the  Princess 
Caroline  ordered  her  to  rise,  saying,  that  it  was  not 
customary  for  young  persons  to  remain  seated  in 
the  presence  of  the  Emperor's  sisters  ;  Stephanie 
rose  immediately,  but  she  no  longer  laughed,  on  the 
contrary,  she  wept  bitterly  ;  the  Emperor,  entering 
at  that  moment,  perceived  her  tears,  and  inquired 
their  source.  "  Is  that  all ! "  he  exclaimed  when 
Stephanie  told  her  grievance,  "well,  come  and  sit 
on  my  knee,  and  you  won't  incommode  anybody  ! " 

This  anecdote  is  lent  an  appearance  of  authen- 
ticity by  a  note  which  is  found  upon  the  register  of 
the  master  of  ceremonies  :  "  Our  will  is,  that  the 
Princess  Stephanie-Napoleon,  our  daughter,  shall  in 
all  circles  enjoy  all  the  privileges  due  her  rank,  and 

that  at  fetes  and  at  table  she  shall  be  seated  at  our 
11 


162  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

side,  and  in  case  we  are  not  present  that  she  shall 
be  placed  at  the  Empress'  right  hand."  This  gave 
Stephanie  precedence  over  the  Emperor's  sisters, 
sisters-in-law,  Hortense,  and  even  over  the  Princess 
Augusta  of  Bavaria. 

On  the  following  day  a  message  announced  to 
the  senate  the  adoption  of  Stephanie  de  Beauharnais 
and  her  approaching  marriage  with  the  Prince  of 
Baden,  and  ordered  the  State  to  send  a  deputation 
to  pay  her  respects,  in  which  ceremony  M.  Claude 
de  Beauharnais,  the  princess's  own  father,  figured 
conspicuously. 

M.  de  Beauharnais,  on  his  return  from  exile,  had 
entered  the  senate,  and  was  then  a  member  of  some 
years'  standing,  with  a  salary  of  twenty-five  thousand 
francs  a  year,  and  he  was  about  to  enjoy  the  bene- 
fits accruing  from  the  parentage  of  a  charming 
daughter.  Napoleon  appointed  him  to  the  senator- 
ship  of  Amiens,  which  brought  him  an  income  of 
twenty-five  thousand  francs  ;  in  1807  endowed  him 
with  twenty-five  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty- 
two  francs,  and  in  1810  made  him  chevalier  d' 
honneur  to  Marie-Louise,  a  position  which  com- 
manded a  salary  of  thirty  thousand  francs,  and  on 
the  22d  of  September,  1807,  made  him  a  personal 
present  of  two  hundred  thousand  francs ;  but  all 
this  was  a  mere  bagatelle  in  comparison  with  what 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND.  163 

the  Emperor  did  for  Stephanie.  He  took  a  personal 
interest  in  her  trousseau,  ordering  for  her  a  tulle 
dress  covered  with  an  embroidery  of  gold  thread 
and  interwoven  with  precious  stones,  the  cost  of 
which  was  twenty-four  thousand  francs  ;  from  Le- 
normand  he  commanded  twelve  dresses,  at  prices 
ranging  from  nineteen  hundred  to  twelve  hundred 
francs ;  from  Leroy  he  commanded  forty-five 
thousand,  one  hundred  and  seventy-eight  francs  and 
ninety-six  centimes'  worth  of  millinery  and  trinkets, 
and  from  Koux-Montagnat,  two  thousand,  five 
hundred  and  seventy-four  francs'  worth  of  artificial 
flowers  ;  in  addition  to  all  this  he  gave  her  a  dot  of 
fifteen  hundred  thousand  francs,  a  superb  parure 
of  diamonds,  and  presented  her  with  a  thousand 
louts  from  his  private  purse. 

Both  the  civil  and  religious  marriages  were 
celebrated  with  the  utmost  pomp  and  magnificence  ; 
Napoleon  could  not  have  done  more  for  his  own 
child,  and  the  festivities  were  not  confined  to  the 
palace,  but  overflowed  into  the  city,  which  was  il- 
luminated by  fireworks  set  off  on  the  Place  de  la 
Concorde.  When  the  last  spark  had  died,  the  last 
note  of  the  band  had  sounded,  and  the  guests  had 
departed,  the  Emperor  and  Empress,  according  to 
usage,  conducted  the  bride  and  groom  to  the  bridal 
chamber,   but  it  was  found  impossible  to  induce 


164  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

Stephanie  to  occupy  it ;  she  wept  and  sobbed,  and 
insisted  that  her  school- fellow,  Mile.  Nelly  Bour- 
jolly,  should  sleep  with  her.  The  court  went  to 
Malmaison  on  the  following  day,  but  Stephanie,  in 
spite  of  all  the  arguments  brought  to  bear  upon  her, 
still  remained  obdurate.  Some  one  told  the  prince 
that  his  wife's  repugnance  arose  from  the  manner 
in  which  he  dressed  his  hair,  as  she  detested  a  cue, 
thereupon  he  had  his  hair  cut  short ;  but  as  soon  as 
Stephanie  perceived  him  she  burst  out  laughing  and 
declared  that  he  was  uglier  than  before.  Night 
after  night  the  prince  went  to  her  door,  supplicat- 
ing and  praying  for  admittance,  and  at  last  ex- 
hausted threw  himself  upon  a  couch  in  the  ante- 
chamber and  fell  asleep ;  in  the  morning  he  went 
and  complained  to  the  Empress,  while  Napoleon 
smilingly  watched  the  couple  who  naturally  were 
the  talk  of  the  chateau. 

That  this  state  of  affairs  gave  the  Emperor  a 
certain  amount  of  satisfaction,  that  he  bore 
Stephanie  no  ill-will  was  proved  by  the  superb  fete 
which  he  gave  at  the  Tuileries  in  honor  of  her 
marriage :  the  first  great  ball  to  which  not  only 
the  court  but  the  gentry  of  the  city  were  bidden. 
Nothing  equalling  the  two  quadrilles — one  in  the 
gallery  of  Diana  conducted  by  the  Princess 
Louise,  the  other  in  the  Salle  des  Marechaux,  con- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  165 

ducted  by  the  Princess  Caroline — had  ever  been 
seen,  while  the  lavishness  of  the  refreshments  set 
all  the  world  talking :  there  were  sixty  entries, 
sixty  roasts  and  two  hundred  desserts  ;  one  thousand 
bottles  of  Beaune,  one  hundred  of  Champagne,  one 
hundred  of  Bordeaux  and  one  hundred  of  sweet 
wines  were  consumed ;  but  the  festivities  did  not 
soften  Stephanie's  heart. 

Political  reasons  intervening,  Napoleon  saw  him- 
self obliged  to  interfere.  Mile,  de  Beauharnais'  co- 
queteries  had  amused  him  and  supplied  a  pretext 
for  teasing  his  wife,  but  he  had  permitted  himself 
rather  too  much  latitude  in  according  to  the  young 
girl  a  rank  disproportionate  to  her  birth  and  fortune 
and  in  celebrating  her  marriage  in  princely  style  ; 
he  now  saw  that  the  patience  of  the  ruler  of  Baden 
was  nearly  exhausted,  and,  as  a  war  with  Prussia 
was  imminent,  felt  it  expedient  to  conciliate  all  the 
German  princes  who  might  become  auxiliaries,  or  at 
least  give  valuable  information. 

Having  respected  Stephanie  previous  to  her  mar- 
riage, he  did  not  afterwards  meditate  making  her 
his  mistress,  and  the  flirtation  which  was  suitable 
neither  to  his  dignity,  his  age  nor  his  temperament, 
grew  wearisome,  and  it  was  becoming  embarrassing 
to  have  her  longer  at  Paris,  while  she  might  be  of 
service  at  Carlsruhe,  if  only  in  counterbalancing 


166  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

the  hostile  influence  of  Markgraf  Louis  and  the 
little  German  court. 

Napoleon  hardly  took  time  to  investigate  the  little 
stories  contained  in  certain  intercepted  letters,  which 
proved  only  too  plainly  what  an  inhospitable  recep- 
tion awaited  his  adopted  daughter,  but  hastened 
her  departure.  Stephanie  left  France  despairing  ; 
she  took  with  her  three  of  her  school-friends  :  Miles, 
de  Mackau,  Bourjolly  and  Gruau,  and  as  soon  as 
she  arrived  in  her  father-in-law's  principality,  she 
wrote  to  the  Emperor  :  "  Sire,  each  day  when  I  am 
at  liberty  I  think  of  you  and  the  Empress,  of  all 
who  are  dearest  to  me  ;  in  imagination,  I  am  in 
France  and  near  you,  and  I  find  a  certain  pleasure  in 
my  sadness."  Napoleon  responded  rather  severely, 
without  making  use  of  any  paternal  or  tender  ex- 
pressions. "  Carlsruhe,"  he  wrote,  "  is  a  charming 
place  of  residence.  Make  yourself  agreeable  to  the 
Elector,  who  is  now  your  father,  and  love  your  hus- 
band, who  merits  your  affection  by  the  tenderness 
he  lavishes  upon  you."  When  she  had  answered  in 
a  manner  which  pleased  him,  saying  that  she  was 
contented  at  Carlsruhe,  Napoleon  wrote  more 
kindly,  calling  her  daughter,  but  recommending  the 
same  line  of  conduct ;  and  he  did  not  become  thor- 
oughly amiable  until  the  hereditary  grand  duke 
asked  him  to  make  the  campaign  with  him,  and  in 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  167 

the  same  letter  announced  that  Stephanie  was  about 
to  become  a  mother  ;  then  he  wrote,  saying:  "I 
only  hear  good  news  of  you  and  hope  you  will  con- 
tinue to  be  kind  and  gentle  to  all  who  surround 
you  ;  "  he  then  authorized  her  to  rejoin  the  Empress 
and  Hortense  at  Mayence,  and  to  remain  with  them 
while  her  husband  was  with  the  army,  and  there- 
after, to  all  his  letters  to  Josephine  he  added  a 
kindly  message  for  Stephanie.  In  1807,  Stephanie 
and  her  husband  were  invited  to  Paris  on  the  oc- 
casion of  the  marriage  of  Jerome  Bonaparte  with 
Catherine  of  Wurtemberg,  and  she  hastened  to 
accept ;  but  if  she  retained  any  illusion  concerning 
the  Emperor's  affection  and  the  exceptional  rank 
which  only  a  year  previous  he  had  bestowed  upon 
her,  she  must  have  been  cruelly  disappointed,  for 
the  place  assigned  her  was  the  very  last  among  the 
princesses,  and  it  was  only  by  courtesy  that  she  took 
a  place  in  the  Imperial  family ;  by  favor  that  she 
was  given  a  folding-chair  when  the  family  were 
seated.  She  had  become  a  princess  of  the  German 
confederation,  and  had  there  been  any  of  the  reign- 
ing German  princesses  present,  they  would  have 
taken  precedence  over  her.  At  first  Stephanie  did 
not  seem  to  perceive  her  downfall,  and  took  pleas- 
ure in  flirting  with  Jerome,  the  new  King  of  West- 
phalia, but  her  aunt  remarking  upon  her  conduct, 


168  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

the  situation  became  clear,  and  realizing  that  she 
could  only  hold  her  position  through  her  husband, 
she  managed  to  inspire  him  with  so  much  affection 
that  he  became  unsupportably  jealous. 

Did  the  prince  stand  by  Stephanie  in  1814,  when, 
after  the  Emperor's  downfall,  he  was  urged  to  re- 
pudiate her  and  turn  out  of  the  palace  of  Zaehrin- 
gen  this  unwelcome  witness  to  broken  oaths,  whose 
presence  constantly  recalled  favors  whose  authors 
the  reigning  house  of  Baden  desired  to  forget? 
Was  it  because  of  his  fidelity  that  at  the  age  of 
thirty-two,  this  man,  previously  in  the  most  vigor- 
ous health,  fell  suddenly  ill,  and  after  dragging  for 
a  year  died  of  a  strange  malady  in  1818  ?  Stephanie, 
although  the  mother  of  numerous  children,  was  un- 
able to  preserve  one  son  ;  when  she  lost  the  second, 
or  believed  him  dead,  she  wrote  broken-heartedly  to 
the  Emperor  :  "  I  was  so  happy  to  tell  your  Majesty 
that  I  had  a  son  and  to  beseech  your  protection  for 
him.  A  son  made  me  forget  my  griefs  and  was 
necessary  to  my  position  which  is  often  a  difficult 
one — now  I  have  lost  my  only  hope  !  "  She  grieved 
unceasingly  over  the  fatality  which  followed  her  sons 
and  took  from  her  race,  stricken  because  of  her 
with  political  sterility,  the  heredity  of  the  throne  of 
Baden. 

Ten  years  after  the  death  of  the  grand  duke,  be- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  1G9 

tween  four  and  five  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the 
26th  of  May,  1828,  a  bourgeois  met  a  young  man  of 
seventeen,  who  muttered  only  one  or  two  phrases 
in  low  German  in  the  Tallow  Market  of  Nuremberg  ; 
the  youth  had  never  walked,  his  eyes  had  never 
seen  the  sun's  light,  his  stomach  was  unable  to  sup- 
port animal  food,  but  he  would  never  have  been 
thus  deformed  had  he  not  since  babyhood  been 
sequestered  in  solitude  and  obscurity.  Stephanie 
was  the  first  to  ponder,  calculate,  and  be  convinced 
that  the  mysterious  and  unknown  youth  at  Nuren- 
berg,  who  was  called  Kaspar  Hauser,  was  her  own 
son — her  child,  in  whose  place  a  dead  baby  had 
been  substituted,  and  who,  a  victim  to  the  hatred 
of  Markgraf  Louis,  and  the  ambition  of  Countess 
Hochberg,  had  for  nearly  sixteen  years  expiated  in 
darkness  and  solitude  the  sin  of  having  a  Napoleon- 
ite  for  his  mother.  Poor  Stephanie  was  unable  to 
do  anything,  for  her  enemies  were  triumphant  and 
powerful ;  one  reigned  upon  the  throne  of  Baden, 
and  she  could  tremble  for  Kaspar  Hauser,  and  weep 
over  his  sad  fate,  when,  after  escaping  three  ambus- 
cades, he  was  finally  assassinated. 

Was  hers  one  of  those  illusions  with  which  a 
mother  loves  to  comfort  her  heart,  or  one  of  those 
revelations,  which,  better  than  all  the  investigations 
of  justice,   sometimes  throw  light  upon  a  great 


170  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

crime?  However  this  may  be,  Stephanie  firmly 
believed  to  her  last  hour  (she  died  on  the  29th  of 
January,  1860),  that  Kaspar  Hauser  was  her  lost 
son,  and  to  the  few  friends  whom  she  received  in 
the  tumble-down  palace  of  Mannheim,  she  asserted 
that  her  son  did  not  die  in  1812,  but  that  he  had 
been  stolen  from  her,  designating  the  authors  and 
accomplices  in  the  crime.  Some  German  authors 
have  attempted  to  demonstrate  that  the  poor 
mother  deceived  herself  ;  for  the  credit  of  the  reign- 
ing house  of  Baden,  it  is  to  be  hoped  she  did. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      171 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

ELEONORE. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  revolution,  Mme.  Cam- 
pan,  once  a  confidential  member  of  Marie  Antoi- 
nette's household,  established  a  school  for  young 
ladies  at  Saint-Germain-en-Laye  ;  Josephine  became 
the  patroness  of  the  institution,  and  there  her 
daughter  and  nieces  were  educated.  This  group  of 
young  girls,  so  closely  allied  to  the  imperial  family, 
drew  around  them  the  daughters  of  those  who  had, 
or  sought  for,  some  appointment  under  the  Con- 
sulate, and  Mme.  Campan's  nieces  making  excel- 
lent marriages,  thanks  to  their  intimacy  with  Hor- 
tense,  the  school  was  still  further  augmented  by 
the  daughters  of  intriguing  parents  who  hoped 
their  children  might  also  profit  by  the  acquaintance 
of  their  royal  school-fellows. 

Mme.  Campan  was  supposedly  an  influential  per- 
son, having  obtained  positions  for  numerous  people, 
pardons  for  exiles  and  the  restitution  of  confiscated 
property  ;  her  school  was  the  fashionable  one  of  the 


172  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

day,  and  on  the  list  of  pupils  can  be  seen,  side  by 
side  with  names  of  people  who  had  recently  at- 
tained eminence,  the  old  historical  ones  of  Noailles, 
Talon,  Lally-Tollendal,  and  Kochemond. 

After  the  Consulate,  the  reputation  of  the  school 
diminished  somewhat,  and  among  the  scholars  there 
was  a  young  girl  of  whose  origin  Mme.  Campan 
was  somewhat  in  ignorance,  and  who  could  prob- 
ably never  have  been  a  pupil  had  the  principal 
then  been  as  strict  regarding  the  parentage  of  those 
whom  she  admitted  as  she  was  in  the  days  of  the 
school's  great  popularity.  This  young  lady  was 
Mile.  Louise-Catherine-Eleonore  Denuelle  de  La 
Plaigne.  The  father  claimed  to  be  a  man  of  wealth, 
but  his  business  ventures  were  not  always  success- 
ful ;  the  mother,  who  was  still  very  pretty,  was 
rather  gay,  and  the  family  lived  in  a  sumptuous 
apartment  on  the  Boulevard  des  Italiens,  received  a 
great  deal  of  rather  mixed  company,  and  managed 
as  best  they  could  from  day  to  day,  awaiting  the 
time  when  their  daughter  should  make  a  rich  mar- 
riage. 

Time  passed,  Mme.  Denuelle  aged,  the  father  ran 
into  debt,  the  quarterly  tuition  was  hard  to  pay, 
and,  moreover,  since  the  departure  of  the  Beauhar- 
nais  from  Mme.  Campan's,  the  chances  of  meeting 
a  desirable  par  tie  in  that  establishment,  had  greatly 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  173 

diminished  ;  so,  as  Mme.  Denuelle  had  not  access  to 
salons  where  her  daughter  might  have  made  such 
acquaintances,  she  determined  to  show  her  at  the 
theatres.  One  evening  at  the  Gaite,  a  good-looking 
officer  entered  the  box  where  Mme  Denuelle  and 
her  daughter  occupied  seats,  and  took  the  vacant 
place ;  the  ladies  were  not  haughty,  the  officer  was 
gallant,  and  an  acquaintance  grew  apace. 

Mme.  Denuelle  invited  the  young  man  to  visit 
them  and  he  did  not  fail  to  do  so  ;  he  soon  became 
so  enamored  of  Eleonore  as  to  ask  her  hand  in  mar- 
riage, and  the  wedding  took  place  on  the  fifteenth 
of  January,  1805,  at  Saint-Germain. 

This  officer,  Jean-Honore-Frangois  Revel,  who 
claimed  to  be  a  captain  of  the  15th  regiment  of 
dragoons  and  the  aide-de-camp  of  General  d' Avrange 
d'Haugeranville,  was  a  knave.  He  had  resigned 
from  the  regiment  of  which  he  was  once  quarter- 
master, and  claimed  that  he  expected  to  get  a  con- 
tract for  supplying  the  army  with  provisions;  in  the 
meanwhile  he  lived  on  credit.  He  appears  to  have 
counted  more  upon  the  beauty  of  his  young  wife  to 
extricate  him  from  his  embarrassment  than  upon 
any  efforts  of  his  own,  and  two  months  after  the 
wedding  he  was  arrested  and  imprisoned  for  at- 
tempting to  pass  a  forged  check. 

Eleonore  then  bethought  herself  that  the  Princess 


174  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

Caroline  Murat  had  been  her  school- fellow,  and, 
warmly  recommended  by  Mme.  Campan,  solicited 
her  highness'  protection.  The  princess  first  placed 
her  in  a  sort  of  asylum  at  Chantilly,  where  unfor- 
tunate women  like  herself  were  received  ;  later,  in 
despite  of  Mme.  Campan's  advice,  she  yielded  to 
Eleonore's  solicitations  and  installed  her  in  her  own 
household. 

Mme.  Kevel  was  an  extremely  handsome  brunette, 
tall  and  graceful,  with  large,  dark  eyes  and  a  lively, 
coquettish  manner  ;  she  had  not  been  educated  to 
entertain  scruples,  and  she  certainly  had  not  ac- 
quired any  in  the  two  months  she  spent  with  Eevel. 
At  first  her  duty  was  to  announce  the  princess' 
guests,  later  she  was  promoted  to  the  dignity  of 
reader,  and  when,  after  the  Emperor's  return  from 
Austerlitz  towards  the  end  of  January,  1806,  he 
came  to  visit  his  sister,  Mme.  Eleonore  deftly 
managed  to  make  herself  noticeable  and  as  soon  as 
propositions  were  made  to  her  accepted  with  en- 
thusiasm, and  allowed  herself  to  be  conducted  to 
the  Tuileries  ;  from  thenceforth  she  went  there 
habitually,  spending  two  or  three  hours  in  the 
Emperor's  society. 

Kevel  had  been  condemned  by  the  criminal  court 
to  two  years'  imprisonment,  and  on  the  13th  of 
April  his  wife   asked  for    a    divorce,   which  was 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  175 

granted  on  the  29th  of  April,  1806  ;  it  was  high 
time,  for  on  the  13th  of  December,  1806,  at  No.  29 
rue  de  la  Yictoire,  she  was  delivered  of  a  male  child 
who  was  registered  as  "Leon,  son  of  Mile.  Denuelle, 
property-holder,  aged  twenty,  and  of  an  absent 
father." 

There  was  no  doubt  as  to  the  child's  parentage  ; 
Eleonore  who  in  her  prayer  for  divorce  had  stated 
that  she  was  "  attached  to  the  person  of  Mme.  la 
Princess  Caroline,"  had,  from  the  time  she  returned 
from  Chantilly,  lived  in  a  small  house  in  the  rue  de 
Provence,  which  she  never  left  save  for  her  visits 
to  the  Tuileries — visits  of  which  Caroline  knew  the 
secret — moreover,  the  child's  resemblance  to  Napo- 
leon was  so  striking  as  to  confute  doubt.  Thus  the 
event  which  Josephine  so  dreaded  came  to  pass  ; 
the  charm  was  broken,  for  henceforth  the  Emperor 
entertained  no  doubts  regarding  his  ability  to  pro- 
vide an  heir  to  the  throne. 

The  Emperor  was  at  Pulstuck,  when,  on  the  31st 
of  December,  the  news  of  Eleonore's  accouchement 
reached  him,  and  doubtless  the  birth  of  this  illegiti- 
mate son  was  strongly  instrumental  in  the  forma- 
tion of  plans  which  two  years  later  he  carried  into 
execution. 

The  child  Leon  was  at  first  confided  to  the  care  of 
Mme.  Loir,  foster-mother  of  Achille  Murat ;  later, 


176  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

in  1812,  M.  Mathieu  de  Mauvieres,  mayor  of  the 
commune  of  Saint-Forget,  baron  of  the  Empire  and 
father-in-law  of  Meneval,  the  Emperor's  private 
secretary,  was  appointed  guardian  to  the  boy,  and 
an  independent  fortune  was  settled  upon  him  by  his 
imperial  father.  Not  content  with  this,  in  January, 
1814,  when  about  to  leave  Paris  to  join  the  army, 
Napoleon  authorized  the  Duke  de  Bassano  to  add 
twelve  thousand  pounds  income,  and  to  this,  on  the 
21st  of  June,  1815,  was  added  canal  stock  valued  at 
one  hundred  thousand  francs,  and  finally,  actuated 
by  conscience,  the  Emperor  added  a  codicil  to  his 
will  in  which  he  bequeathed  to  Leon  three  hundred 
and  twenty  thousand  francs  for  the  purchase  of  a 
country  seat,  and  as  long  as  he  lived  interested 
himself  in  his  son's  welfare.  The  thirty-seventh 
paragraph  of  his  testamentary  instructions  to  his 
executors,  proves  that  the  lad  was  never  forgotten  : 
"If  his  taste  runs  in  that  direction,"  wrote  Napo- 
leon, "  I  should  be  pleased  to  have  little  Leon  enter 
the  magistracy." 

To  avoid  a  rupture  with  Josephine,  to  whom  he 
was  still  sincerely  attached,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  comply  with  the  law  of  heredity  in  a  manner 
which  seemed  to  him  both  satisfactory  and  natural, 
Napoleon  conceived  the  idea  of  adopting  his  natural 
son,  spoke  of  it  to  the  Empress,  sounded  many  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  177 

his  confidants  on  the  subject,  and  invoked  precedents 
to  justify  his  inclination.  That  he  did  not  carry 
these  plans  into  execution  is  probably  due  to  the 
fact  that  he  realized  that  the  days  of  Louis  XIV. 
were  past,  and  that  the  country  would  not  permit 
him  to  follow  the  example  given  by  that  monarch 
who  had  designated  the  Duke  de  Maine  and  the 
Comte  de  Toulouse  as  his  heirs  to  the  throne. 

Napoleon  became  very  much  attached  to  this 
child,  and  frequently  had  him  brought  either  to  the 
Elysee  or  to  his  sister  Caroline's,  sometimes  re- 
ceived him  even  at  the  Tuileries  while  dressing  or 
at  breakfast ;  he  played  with  him,  gave  him  dainties 
to  eat  and  was  amused  by  Leon's  childish  chatter. 
As  time  passed  Napoleon  was  necessarily  unable  to 
bestow  the  same  personal  attention  upon  Leon,  but 
in  1815  he  recommended  the  boy  to  the  care  of  his 
mother  and  Cardinal  Fesch.  Mme.  Bonaparte  was 
already  interested  in  the  boy  and  seemed  disposed 
to  do  a  great  deal  for  him,  but  unfortunately  Leon's 
was  not  a  character  to  inspire  warm  affection. 

In  1832 — he  was  then  twenty-five — Denuelle  was 

already  nearly  ruined,   owing  to  his  passion  for 

gambling,  and  applied  for  assistance  to  Cardinal 

Fesch,  swearing  that  he  would  never  again  lose 

forty-five  thousand  francs  at  a  sitting.     It  was  a 

gambler's  oath,  for  a  year  later  he  was  as  badly  off 
12 


178  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

as  ever,  attempting  to  brazen  out  his  affairs,  mixing 
with  visionary  politicians  and  engaging  right  and 
left  in  duels,  for  he  was  brave  and  somewhat  of  a 
bully.  In  1834,  by  trading  on  the  name  of  the 
grand  man  to  whom  he  owed  his  existence,  he  was 
elected  chief  of  the  communal  battalion  of  the 
national  guards  of  Saint-Denis  ;  he  was  soon  sus- 
pended for  disobedience  to  orders,  but  afterwards 
reinstated,  and  attempted  to  justify  himself  by  the 
publication  of  a  number  of  pamphlets,  which  are, 
however,  so  hazy  that  they  could  hardly  have  served 
to  clear  his  character  before  the  public.  In  1840  he 
was  one  of  the  official  cortege  on  the  return  from 
Cendres,  and,  being  absolutely  ruined,  began  a  series 
of  lawsuits  against  his  mother  with  the  intention 
of  wringing  money  from  her,  she  having  preserved 
her  fortune  intact. 

The  Emperor  had  never  renewed  his  relations 
with  Leon's  mother,  had,  indeed,  refused  to  receive 
her  when,  in  1807,  she  presented  herself  at  Fontaine- 
bleau,  but  he  acquitted  his  debt  to  her  by  giving  her 
a  house  in  the  rue  de  laVictoire,and  a  dot  of  twenty- 
two  thousand  pounds,  which  was  not  transferable. 
She  married,  in  1808,  a  lieutenant  of  infantry,  M. 
Pierre-Philippe  Augier,  who  took  her  to  Spain  with 
him,  and  who  died  in  captivity  after  the  Kussian 
campaign.     Eleonore  was  not  inconsolable,  for  at 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  179 

Seckenheim,  on  the  25th  of  May,  1814,  she  was  mar- 
ried for  the  third  time  to  M.  Charles- Auguste-Emile, 
Count  de  Luxbourg,  and  a  major  in  the  service  of 
the  king  of  Bavaria.  Eeturning  to  Paris  with  her 
third  husband  she  was  obliged  to  combat  the  first, 
for  Kevel,  profiting  by  the  fall  of  Napoleon,  posed 
as  a  victim  and  essayed  to  blackmail  his  ex-wife  ; 
Mme.  de  Luxbourg  resisted,  and  Eevel,  to  avenge 
himself  and  to  make  a  few  pennies,  published  in- 
numerable pamphlets  whose  titles  were  startling, 
and  admirably  combined  to  attract  attention  and 
create  a  scandal,  but  he  was  defeated  in  everything 
he  attempted  against  his  former  wife.  Leon  was 
somewhat  more  fortunate  in  his  suits  against  his 
mother,  for,  although  he  lost  a  suit  wherein  he 
charged  her  with  swindling  and  attempted  to  force 
her  to  render  an  account  of  her  income,  he  succeeded 
in  having  himself  acknowledged  as  her  natural  son, 
and  on  the  second  of  July,  1846,  he  obtained  a  lump 
sum  of  four  thousand  francs  instead  of  the  yearly 
allowance  which  he  had  sued  for.  In  1848  he  seems 
to  have  been  somewhat  better  off  financially,  for  he 
meditated  persenting  himself  as  a  candidate  for  the 
presidency  of  the  Republic  in  competition  with  the 
Prince  Louis  Napoleon,  with  whom,  eight  years 
previous,  in  March,  1840,  he  had  been  ambitious  to 
fight  a  duel.     Leon's  conduct  in  this  respect  was  so 


180  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

singular  that  it  can  only  be  explained  by  the  sup- 
position that  he  was  mentally  deranged.  In  1848 
he  put  forth  his  claims  in  a  manifesto  beginning  : 
"  Citizen  Leon,  ex-count  Leon,  son  of  the  Emperor 
Napoleon,  director  of  the  Pacific  Society,  to  the 
French  people." 

The  empire  re-installed,  Denuelle  obtained  from 
Napoleon  III.  a  pension  of  six  thousand  francs,  and 
the  payment  of  Napoleon's  first  legacy  to  him  of  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand,  three  hundred 
and  nineteen  francs,  but  that  did  not  content  him, 
and  in  1853  he  reclaimed  five  hundred  and  seventy- 
two  thousand,  six  hundred  and  seventy  francs  in 
virtue  of  some  visionary  decree,  and  in  1857  sued  the 
minister  of  Public  Works  for  the  sum  of  five  hundred 
thousand  francs,  which  he  claimed  was  due  him  for 
draughts  made  by  him  for  the  chemin  de  fer  du 
Nord.  Not  a  year  passed  that  he  did  not  bring  for- 
ward some  claim  or  petition,  and  the  civil  list  paid 
his  debts  five  or  six  times  ;  but  he  was  irrepressible 
and  his  brain  was  in  a  state  of  perpetual  evolution 
up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  at  Pon- 
toise  on  the  15th  of  April,  1881. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEB  AND  HUSBAND       181 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

HORTENSE. 

The  year  1807  was  a  decisive  one  in  the  life  of 
Napoleon  ;  the  month  of  January  being  marked  by 
the  birth  of  Leon,  which  gave  to  him  the  certitude 
that  he  could  have  a  direct  heir,  and  May  by  the 
death  of  Napoleon-Charles,  eldest  son  of  Louis  and 
Hortense.  With  him  died  Napoleon's  dream  of 
creating  an  heredity  by  adoption,  and  the  child's 
death  was  also  a  sad  blow  to  his  affections.  Napo- 
leon-Charles had  been  doubly  dear  to  the  Emperor, 
being  the  son  of  the  girl,  who,  from  the  moment  he 
met  her,  had  taken  such  a  hold  upon  his  heart  that 
he  had  accorded  to  her  tears  the  pardon  refused  her 
mother,  and  to  whom  he  had  been  both  father  and 
guardian.  Napoleon-Charles  was  the  child  also  of 
his  best-loved  brother,  "the  little  brother"  who 
had  been  to  him  almost  as  a  son,  whom  he  had 
lodged,  fed  and  educated  when  he  had  but  a  lieu- 
tenant's scanty  pay  ;  whom  he  had  made  his  aide-de- 
camp and  the  witness  of  his  victories,  whom  he  had 


182  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

ennobled  as  he  himself  rose  in  rank,  until  he  stood 
close  to  the  throne.  In  his  nephew  Napoleon  saw 
all  the  characteristics  of  the  Bonapartes,  undis- 
figured  by  Louis'  blobber-lip  and  ugly  nose,  and  un- 
beautified  by  the  slender  grace  of  his  mother's 
family,  but  a  Bonaparte  through  and  through, 
idealized  only  by  an  aureole  of  golden  hair.  To  this 
child,  the  first  male  of  his  generation,  Napoleon  had 
given  his  father's  name,  and  he  had  shown  such  a 
lively  affection  for  the  boy  that  gossips  had  begun 
by  insinuating,  and  had  finally  asserted,  that  he  was 
the  child's  real  father,  that  his  step-daughter  had 
been  his  mistress  before  becoming  Louis'  wife. 

Hortense's  marriage-contract  was  signed  on  the 
3d  of  January,  1802,  the  marriage  celebrated  on 
the  4th,  and  her  son  was  born  on  the  10th  of  October, 
1802,  therefore  she  was  certainly  not  enceinte  when 
she  married,  since  there  were  two  hundred  and 
eighty  days  between  the  time  she  was  wed  and  the 
birth  of  her  child. 

Louis  Bonaparte  was  the  most  jealous  and  sus- 
picious of  husbands ;  he  tyrannized  over  his  wife 
from  the  hour  of  their  marriage ;  he  never  left  her, 
had  her  constantly  under  surveillance,  and  forbade 
her  to  pass  even  one  night  at  Saint- Cloud.  Suffer- 
ing from  an  illness  due  to  youthful  indiscretions,  he 
at  first  essayed  to  effect  a  cure  by  taking  tripe  baths, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  183 

the  stench  of  which  infected  the  old  orangery  which 
stood  at  the  end  of  the  Terrasse  des  Feuillant ;  later, 
to  draw  out  the  humor,  he  slept  in  the  night-gown 
and  sheets  which  had  previously  served  a  hospital 
patient  afflicted  with  the  itch,  and  he  obliged  his 
wife  to  sleep  on  a  little  bed  in  the  same  room  with 
him.  Every  maid  who  showed  the  slightest  affec- 
tion for  Hortense  was  pitilessly  discharged  ;  his 
mother-in-law  was  a  target  for  the  gravest  accusa- 
tions, yet  Louis  had  never  the  slightest  doubt  of  his 
wife's  virtue.  In  his  "Documents  Historiques  sur 
la  Hollande, "  he  affirms  that  he  was  the  father  of  the 
three  children  whom  his  wife  and  he  "  loved  with 
equal  tenderness  ; "  this  affirmation  he  repeated  both 
in  prose  and  in  verse,  for  he  thought  himself  a  poet ; 
and  when,  on  the  Emperor's  proposal  to  adopt 
Napoleon-Charles,  Louis  alluded  to  the  current 
reports  regarding  the  boy's  paternity,  it  was  not  be- 
cause he  attached  the  slightest  importance  to  them, 
but  because  they  served  as  a  pretext  for  not  yielding 
to  his  brother's  wishes.  Louis-Napoleon  had  an  un- 
fortunately melancholy  and  peculiar  disposition,  but 
he  loved  his  son  as  much  as  he  could  love  any  one, 
and  the  child's  death  was  a  severe  trial ;  after  this 
loss  he  was  for  a  time  reconciled  to  Hortense,  with 
whom  he  previously  lived  so  unhappily  that  his 
imperial  brother  had  more  than  once  seen  fit  to 


184 

remonstrate  with  him,  and  he  wrote  kind  and  affec- 
tionate letters  *to  Josephine,  whom  ordinarily  he 
detested.  Shortly  after  the  death  of  her  son,  Hor- 
tense,  who  was  in  poor  health,  went  to  Cauterets 
accompanied  by  her  husband,   and  it  was  there, 

under  circumstances  the  details  of  which  are  well- 

i 

known,  that  she  became  enceinte  with  her  third  son, 
Charles-Louis-Napoleon,  afterwards  known  as  Na- 
poleon III.  ;  thus  Louis  Bonaparte  never  believed 
for  an  instant  that  Hortense  had  been  his  brother's 
mistress,  and  not  only  did  he  bear  witness  to  his 
faith  in  her  virtue,  but  his  conduct  was  an  affirma- 
tion of  his  convictions  ;  as  for  Hortense,  until  1809, 
she  remained  ignorant  that  such  gossip  was  afloat. 

Josephine's  marriage  with  General  Bonaparte  had 
wounded  her  daughter  to  the  quick,  for  she  felt  it 
to  be  almost  a  crime  for  her  mother  to  wed  one  who 
was  a  soldier  under  the  Eepublic,  a  man  whose 
political  principles  were  similar  to  those  entertained 
by  the  men  who  had  caused  her  father's  execution. 
Previous  to  her  mother's  marriage,  Hortense  lived 
at  Saint- Germain-en-Laye,  near  her  grandfather, 
the  Marquis  de  Beauharnais  and  her  aunt,  Mme. 
Eenaudin,  whom  he  had  recently  married.  At 
the  beginning  of  the  Consulate  she  was  entered 
at  Mme.  Campan's,  and  she  did  not  go  to  live  at  the 
Tuileries  until  about  the  time  when  the  Consul  left 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  185 

France  for  Marengo ;  thus  it  was  not  until  Bona- 
parte returned  from  Italy  that  Hortense  saw  him 
continually  and  familiarly. 

Napoleon  always  entertained  a  tender  and  pa- 
ternal affection  for  his  wife's  daughter,  which  she 
returned  only  with  timid  respect ;  she  trembled  when 
addressing  him,  dared  ask  nothing  of  him,  and 
when  obliged  to  make  a  request  employed  inter- 
mediaries. i  i  The  little  goose, "  Napoleon  frequently 
said,  "  why  don't  she  speak  to  me ;  why  is  the  child 
so  afraid  of  me  ? "  He  did  not  interfere  when 
Josephine  arranged  the  marriage  between  her 
daughter  and  Louis  Bonaparte,  because  he  hoped 
that  this  marriage  might  unite  his  own  family  and 
that  of  his  wife,  and  foresaw  that  it  might  be 
politically  judicious,  and  he  also  felt  a  delicacy  in 
interfering  with  any  of  Josephine's  plans  for  her 
children  ;  but  whenever  he  thought  it  necessary  he 
did  not  hesitate  to  counsel  Louis  as  to  his  conduct 
towards  Hortense,  and  with  the  most  admirable 
tact  and  delicacy  strove  to  calm  his  jealous  fears 
and  point  out  to  him  wherein  his  conduct  was  faulty. 
He  pitied  his  step-daughter,  venerated  her,  and 
guarded  his  speech  in  her  presence ;  on  more  than 
one  occasion  he  said :  "  Hortense  obliges  me  to 
believe  in  virtue." 

Napoleon  was  not  ignorant  of  the  rumors  which 


186  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

were  afloat  regarding  his  relations  with  his  step- 
daughter, rumors  which  some  of  those  who  were 
very  near  to  him  were  assiduous  in  spreading  and 
which  were  amplified  by  the  English  papers.  In 
order  to  put  a  stop  to  the  calumnies  he  bethought 
himself  of  a  plan  which  does  greater  credit  to  his 
knightly  intentions  than  to  his  discrimination ;  he 
commanded  a  ball  to  be  given  at  Malmaison,  and 
that  Hortense,  although  then  in  her  seventh  month, 
should  assist  at  it ;  he  invited  her  to  dance,  but 
Hortense  declined,  alleging  that  she  was  weary, 
although  in  reality  her  refusal  arose  from  her 
knowledge  of  her  stepfather's  dislike  of  seeing 
women  who  were  enceinte  upon  the  floor  of  a  ball- 
room, above  all,  when,  as  was  the  fashion  of  the 
time,  they  were  clothed  in  such  clinging  garments 
that  the  outlines  of  the  figure  were  plainly  discern- 
ible. The  Emperor,  however,  insisted,  asking  simply 
for  a  contredance,  and,  after  persisting  for  some  time 
in  her  refusal,  she  finally  yielded.  The  following 
morning  a  newspaper  published  some  gallant  verses 
upon  the  subject,  and  Hortense,  furious,  complained 
to  the  Emperor,  but  received  no  satisfaction  ;  the 
truth  being  that  the  ball  had  been  given  solely  to 
furnish  occasion  for  the  verses,  and  so  force  the 
public  to  acknowledge  that  she  was  not  so  far  ad- 
vanced in  pregnancy  as  was  currently  reported ; 


187 

it  was  with  this  view  also  that  the  Moniteur,  which 
up  to  that  time  had  never  spoken  of  the  Consul's 
family,  inserted  in  its  edition  of  October  12th, 
1802,  the  following  announcement :  "On  the  10th 
inst.,  at  9  o'clock  in  the  evening,  a  son  was  born  to 
Monsieur  and  Madame  Louis  Bonaparte." 

Napoleon  did  all  in  his  power  to  crush  the  cal- 
umny, but  his  efforts  proved  unavailing ;  so  he  grad- 
ually accustomed  himself  to  look  upon  the  report 
from  a  political  standpoint  and  cogitated  how  he 
might  turn  it  to  account.  He  felt  an  almost  pa- 
ternal affection  for  Napoleon- Charles,  and  some  of 
the  happiest  hours  of  his  life  were  spent  in  play 
with  him  ;  it  delighted  him  to  hear  the  child  cry  : 
"Long  live  Nanon  the  soldier  !"  when  he  saw  a 
grenadier  pass,  and  he  frequently  had  the  little 
fellow  sit  by  his  side  while  he  dined,  being  highly 
amused  by  the  child's  desire  to  touch  everything 
and  by  the  agility  with  which  he  seized  and  upset 
everything  within  reach  of  his  baby  hands.  The 
Emperor  frequently  took  Napoleon- Charles  to  the 
garden  to  feed  tobacco  to  the  gazelles,  and,  seating 
him  astride  one  of  them,  would  roar  with  laughter 
at  the  baby's  antics  ;  he  often  sent  for  the  child 
when  in  his  dressing-room,  and,  after  caressing  him 
and  making  the  most  extraordinary  grimaces  for 
his  amusement,  would  end  by  sitting  dowi*  upon 


188  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

the  floor,  the  better  to  play  with  him.  Napoleon 
loved  the  little  nephew,  whom  the  people  claimed 
was  his  own  son,  as  though  he  were  verily  bone  of 
his  bone  and  flesh  of  his  flesh,  and  therefore  the 
idea  of  adopting  him  as  his  heir  was  not  repugnant, 
even  if  by  so  doing  the  people  were  convinced  of  the 
truth  of  their  suppositions.  In  this  lad  he  believed 
they  would  find  impersonated  the  characteristics  of 
his  race  and  his  own  genius,  and  that  they  could 
not  claim  that  the  line  which  he  had  founded  was 
built  upon  a  fiction.  It  must  be  admitted  that  this 
plan  was  contrary  to  all  established  ideas,  but  Napo- 
leon had  no  prejudices  and  believed  that  his  excep- 
tional destiny  placed  him  above  humanity  at  large, 
that  the  nation  would  not  judge  him  according  to 
accepted  moral  formulas,  and  that  the  people's  de- 
sire to  assure  the  stability  of  his  government  would 
cause  them  to  overlook  the  unconventionality  of  the 
proceeding,  the  more  easily  as  they  could  not  confirm 
the  existing  suspicion. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  it  is  upon  simple 
supposition  only  that  we  accredit  the  Emperor  with 
these  ideas  and  projects  ;  we  base  our  statements 
upon  a  conversation  which  he  had  with  Hortense, 
two  years  after  the  death  of  her  son,  and  which  is 
related  at  length  in  her  unpublished  memoires.  He 
then  spoke  freely  to  his  step-daughter  regarding  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  189 

consequences  attendant  upon  the  death  of  Napoleon- 
Charles,  who,  as  he  said,  was  thought  to  be  his 
son  as  well  as  hers.  "  You  know,"  Napoleon  said, 
"  how  absurd  such  a  supposition  is,  but  you  could 
not  convince  all  Europe  that  the  child  was  not 
mine,"  he  stopped  a  moment,  arrested  by  a  move- 
ment of  surprise  from  Hortense,  then  continued  : 
"  Your  reputation  does  not  suffer  on  this  account, 
as  you  are  generally  esteemed  ;  nevertheless,  the 
idea  receives  credence  everywhere  ;  it  was  perhaps 
best  that  it  was  so,  and  for  that  reason  I  regard  his 
death  as  a  great  misfortune."  a  I  was  so  surprised," 
wrote  Hortense,  "that  I  was  unable  to  utter  a 
word,  I  no  longer  heard  what  he  said.  That  reflec- 
tion, 'it  was  perhaps  best  that  it  was  believed,'  tore 
a  veil  from  before  my  eyes  and  pierced  me  to  the 
heart ;  was  it  possible  that  he  who  had  been  so  kind 
and  generous,  in  whom  I  seemed  to  find  my  own 
lost  father,  had  been  actuated  throughout  by  po- 
litical motives  and  not  by  affection  !  " 

Hortense  was  mistaken,  for  if  Napoleon  had  been 
actuated  by  policy  he  also  was  moved  by  affection, 
but  her  indignation  was  quite  natural,  considering 
that  she  looked  upon  the  situation  from  a  woman's 
point  of  view,  and  was  unable  to  conceive  of  the 
profound  subtlety  of  Napoleon's  reasoning.  If  he 
had  showered  kindnesses  and  attentions  upon  Hor- 


190  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

tense  it  had  not  been  in  order  to  confirm  the  story 
that  Napoleon-Charles  was  his  son,  on  the  contrary 
he  had  made  every  effort  to  refute  it ;  but  the  gossip 
persisting  and  a  conviction  of  its  truth  being  firmly 
established  in  the  public  mind  he  had  sought  to 
utilize  it  for  his  own  interests  and  the  consolidation 
of  his  dynasty  ;  it  was  a  battlefield  inspiration 
which  he  had  had,  for  one  of  his  most  remarkable 
faculties  was  the  ability  to  look  situations  clearly  in 
the  face,  to  discern  at  a  glance  precisely  where  he 
stood,  make  the  best  of  affairs,  and  act  promptly 
upon  his  intuitions. 

It  was  owing  to  his  belief  in  a  philosophical  ac- 
ceptance of  all  situations,  that,  while  he  felt 
keenly  the  loss  of  Napoleon-Charles,  he  accepted 
the  inevitable  with  calmness.  The  remark,  "I 
have  not  time  to  indulge  in  sentimental  regrets 
like  other  men,"  has  been  accredited  him  ;  it  might 
better  be  admitted  that  the  death  of  his  poor  lit- 
tle nephew  was  a  grief  to  him,  for  he  wrote  to  all 
his  correspondents,  at  least  twenty  times  to  Jose- 
phine, six  or  seven  to  Hortense,  and  severally  to 
Joseph,  Jerome,  Fouch£  and  Monge,  expressing  his 
sorrow,  but  adding,  "  that  it  was  destiny."  It  was 
not  in  Napoleon's  nature,  nor  in  accordance  with  the 
philosophical  formula  which  the  continual  spectacle 
of  war  and  death  in  all  its  most  terrible  forms  had 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  191 

imposed  upon  his  spirit,  to  yield  to  idle  tears  when 
a  destiny  was  accomplished. 

Napoleon-Charles  was  one  of  the  ties  which  at- 
tached Bonaparte  to  Josephine,  and  this  tie  broken 
there  only  remained  between  ,hem  those  bonds  of 
tenderness  which  were  woven  by  ten  years  of 
wedded  life  ;  years  broken  by  long  absences,  marred 
by  frequent  quarrels  and  strange  misunderstand- 
ings. Could  these  bonds  resist  such  a  strain  as 
they  were  subjected  to  in  1805  by  his  liaison  with 
Madame  *  *  *  *  ? 


192  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 


CHAPTEE  XV. 

MADAME  WALEWSKA. 

On  the  1st  of  January,  1807,  the  Emperor,  on  his 
way  from  Pulstuck  to  Warsaw,  stopped  to  change 
post-horses  at  the  little  town  of  Bronie  ;  a  noisy  and 
enthusiastic  crowd  awaited  the  liberator  of  Poland, 
and  rushed  to  surround  the  imperial  carriage  aa 
soon  as  it  came  in  sight.  As  the  carriage  stopped 
before  the  post-house,  General  Duroc  descended  and 
cleared  an  entrance  ;  he  was  about  to  pass  the  door 
when  he  heard  a  cry  of  entreaty,  saw  hands  lifted 
in  supplication,  and  a  voice  addressing  him  in 
French,  said  :  "  Oh,  sir,  pray  get  us  out  of  this 
crowd,  and  arrange  so  that  I  may  obtain  even  a 
glimpse  of  His  Majesty  ! "  Duroc  paused  and  look- 
ing about  saw  that  the  demand  came  from  two 
ladies,  who  seemed  sadly  out  of  place  in  the  multi- 
tude of  peasants  and  workmen  ;  the  one  who  spoke 
to  him  seemed  almost  a  child,  she  was  very  fair  and 
fragile,  with  great,  blue,  innocent-looking  eyes  which 
at  that  moment  glowed  with  patriotic  enthusiasm  ; 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  193 

her  skin,  of  the  texture  and  freshness  of  a  tea-rose, 
was  flushed  with  embarrassment,  and  her  slender 
yet  supple  and  graceful  form  trembled  with  excite- 
ment ;  she  was  dressed  very  simply,  and  wore  a  dark 
hat  wound  about  with  a  black  veil. 

Duroc  took  in  the  situation  at  a  glance,  and  extri- 
cating the  two  ladies  from  the  crowd  gave  his 
haod  to  the  blonde  and  led  her  to  the  carriage  door. 
"  Sire,"  he  said  to  Napoleon,  " deign  to  greet  these 
ladies,  who  braved  the  dangers  of  the  crowd  to  see 
you." 

The  Emperor  lifted  his  hat  and  leaning  towards 
the  lady  began  to  talk  to  her,  but  she,  as  she 
afterwards  recounted,  was  so  excited  by  the  emo- 
tions which  agitated  her  that  she  did  not  permit 
him  to  finish  his  sentence.  "Welcome,  Sire,"  she 
exclaimed,  i '  a  thousand  times  welcome  to  Poland  ! 
Nothing  which  we  can  do  can  sufficiently  demon- 
strate the  affection  we  bear  you,  nor  the  pleasure 
we  Poles  feel  in  having  you  step  upon  this  land 
which  looks  to  you  for  deliverance." 

While  the   lady   spoke,  Napoleon   watched    her 

closely,  and  when  she  ceased,  took  a  bouquet  from 

the  carriage,  presented  it  to  her  and  said  :     "Keep 

this  as  a  guarantee  of  my  good  intentions,  we  shall 

meet  at  Warsaw,  I  hope,  and  I  shall  reclaim   a 

reward  from  your  fair  lips."    Duroc  then  took  his 
13 


194  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

seat  beside  the  Emperor,  and  the  carriage  drove 
rapidly  off,  while  Napoleon  waved  a  parting  salute 
to  the  young  woman. 

The  person  who  had  made  such  an  effort  to  see 
the  Emperor,  and  welcome  him  to  Polish  soil,  was 
Marie  Walewska,  nee  Laczinska.  She  was  the  off- 
spring of  a  very  old  but  poor  and  numerous  family. 
M.  Laczinski  died  when  Marie  was  a  baby,  leaving 
six  children,  and  the  widow,  who  was  absorbed 
in  making  the  best  of  the  small  domain  which 
constituted  their  fortune,  sent  her  daughters  to 
boarding-school,  where  they  learned  to  dance, 
acquired  a  smattering  of  French  and  German,  and 
a  slight  knowledge  of  music.  Between  fifteen  and 
sixteen  years  of  age  Marie  returned  home,  with  but 
a  mediocre  education,  but  with  a  pure  heart,  which 
knew  but  two  passions — religion  and  country — her 
love  for  her  God  was  balanced  by  her  love  for 
Poland ;  those  were  the  pivots  upon  which  her 
nature  turned,  and  to  arouse  her  from  her  usually 
gentle  sweetness  it  sufficed  to  say  that  she  would 
marry  a  Russian  or  a  Prussian,  her  country's  ene- 
mies, a  Protestant  or  schismatic.  She  had  hardly 
returned  to  her  home,  when,  by  a  singular  chance,  she 
had  two  excellent  opportunities  for  marriage,  and 
Mme.  Laczinski  permitted  her  daughter  to  choose 
between  the  aspirants  for  her  hand.     One  was  a 


NAPOLEON",  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  195 

charming  young  man  who  seemed  to  have  every- 
thing in  his  favor,  and  who  had  pleased  her  from 
the  first ;  he  was  very  rich,  well-born  and  remark- 
ably handsome — but  he  was  a  Eussian,  and  a  son  of 
one  of  those  generals  who  had  cruelly  oppressed 
Poland.  Marie  could  not  consent  to  become  his 
wife,  so  her  choice  fell  upon  the  other  suitor,  old 
Anastase  Colonna  de  Walewice- Walewska,  who  was 
seventy  years  of  age,  a  widower  for  the  second  time, 
and  whose  oldest  grandchild  was  nine  years  her 
senior,  but  he  was  very  rich,  the  Seigneur  of  the 
province  which  the  Laczinskas  inhabited,  owned 
most  of  the  land,  laid  down  the  laws,  inhabited  the 
chateau  of  the  neighborhood,  and  was  the  only  per- 
son who  invited  his  poor  neighbors  to  dinner.  He 
had  been  the  late  king's  chamberlain,  and  on  im- 
portant occasions  decorated  his  coat  with  the  order 
of  the  White  Eagle  ;  he  was  the  head  of  one  of 
the  most  illustrious  families  of  Poland,  who  were 
authentically  connected  with  the  Colonnas  of  Eome 
and  bore  the  same  coat-of-arms,  and  he  was  of  more 
ancient  lineage  than  any  other  family  in  the 
kingdom.  It  was  not  strange  that  Mme.  Laczinska 
was  enchanted  at  the  prospect  of  having  so  illustri- 
ous a  son-in-law,  and  Marie  made  little  resistance, 
for  her  first  appeal  to  her  mother  was  met  with 
an  unanswerable  argument ;  she  fell  ill,  however, 


196  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND. 

of  an  inflammatory  fever,  and  for  four  months 
hovered  between  life  and  death.  When  barely  con- 
valescent she  was  led  to  the  altar,  and  the  miserable 
young  woman  spent  three  years  in  the  dreary  cha- 
teau of  Walewice,  finding  her  only  consolation  in 
her  religion.  At  last  she  gave  birth  to  a  son  and  a 
desire  for  life  re-awoke  in  her.  She  determined  to 
]ive  for  her  child,  who  had  a  right  to  the  happiness 
which  she  had  missed,  but  she  did  not  wish  that  he 
should  live  upon  annexed  land  which  was  no  longer 
a  country,  that  he  should  be,  like  her,  in  servitude,  or 
that,  like  his  father,  he  should  beg  of  the  conqueror 
his  property  and  title  ;  she  wished  her  son  to  be  a 
free  man  and  a  Pole,  and  to  attain  that  end  it  was 
necessary  that  his  country  should  rise  and  free  her- 
self. 

Napoleon  had  already  vanquished  Austria,  meas- 
ured his  strength  against  Russia  at  Austerlitz,  and 
was  about  to  strike  at  Prussia  and  her  allies  ;  he 
was  a  providential  adversary  of  her  country's  ene- 
mies and  seemed  destined  to  save  Poland. 

When  the  campaign  of  1806  opened  and  Napo- 
leon's forces  marched  with  incredible  rapidity  across 
France  and  Germany  to  Berlin,  the  Prussians  melt- 
ing like  phantoms  before  them,  Mme.  Walewska 
reached  such  a  state  of  feverish  enthusiasm  that  she 
could  no  longer  remain  at  Walewice,  to  which  re- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND.  197 

mote  spot  news  penetrated  but  slowly,  and  her  hus- 
band being  as  great  a  patriot  as  herself,  they  went 
to  Warsaw,  where  they  established  themselves  as 
became  their  rank. 

Mme.  Walewska,  conscious  of  her  lack  of  education 
and  worldly  knowledge,  fearing  to  blunder  when 
she  spoke  French,  unsupported  by  family  or  friends, 
dreaded  to  go  into  society,  and  above  all  to  appear 
at  LaBlacha,  the  palace  of  Prince  Joseph  Poniatow- 
ski,  and  the  rally  in  g-place  of  Warsaw's  best  society, 
and  though  in  obedience  to  her  husband's  command, 
she  made  a  few  formal  and  obligatory  visits,  she 
held  aloof  from  the  gaieties  of  the  capital,  thus  re- 
maining, despite  her  loveliness,  almost  unknown. 

The  whole  city  was  in  a  tumult  of  excitement 
over  the  approaching  arrival  of  the  Emperor,  all 
being  desirous  that  his  reception  at  Warsaw  should 
outdo  the  welcome  given  him  at  Posen  ;  the  city  was 
turned  topsy-turvy  by  the  citizens  in  their  deter- 
mination to  give  Napoleon  a  royal  welcome,  for 
they  felt  that  the  fate  of  Poland  lay  in  his  hands. 
Mme.  Walewska  longed  to  be  the  first  to  greet  him, 
and,  without  weighing  the  importance  of  the  step 
she  was  taking,  persuaded  one  of  her  cousins  to 
accompany  her  and  rushed  to  Bronie. 

After  the  meeting  which  we  described  in  the 


198  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HTJSBAND. 

beginning  of  the  chapter  she  stood  gazing  after  the 
imperial  carriage  until  it  was  lost  to  view ;  then, 
carefully  enveloping  the  bouquet  which  the  Emperor 
had  given  her,  she  stepped  into  her  carriage  and 
returned  to  Warsaw. 

Her  intention  was  to  keep  her  journey  a  secret, 
to  shun  all  the  f§tes  and  thus  avoid  a  presentation 
to  Napoleon  ;  but  her  companion,  though  sworn  to 
secrecy,  was  far  too  elated  over  the  adventure  to 
keep  the  story  to  herself,  and  one  morning  Prince 
Joseph  Poniatowski  sent  to  inquire  at  what  hour 
Mme.  Walewska  could  receive  him,  and,  calling  in 
the  afternoon,  invited  her  to  a  ball  he  was  about  to 
give  in  honor  of  the  Emperor,  saying  that  Napoleon 
wished  particularly  to  meet  her  a  second  time.  As 
she  blushingly  refused  to  understand  his  reference 
to  her  first  meeting  with  His  Majesty,  the  prince, 
laughing  heartily  over  the  matter,  explained  his 
knowledge  of  the  affair.  It  appeared  that  at  one 
of  the  dinners  given  in  the  Emperor's  honor,  he  had 
been  observed  to  look  attentively  at  the  Princess 
Lubomirska,  and  she  was  immediately  presented, 
but  after  meeting  her,  Napoleon  paid  but  scant 
attention  to  the  lady  ;  this  indifference  surprised 
Prince  Joseph,  but  was  explained  by  Duroc,  who  re- 
lated the  episode  of  Bronie,  and  explained  that  his 
royal  master  had  fancied  that  in  the  princess  he 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      199 

had  discovered  the  charming  unknown.  Duroc  gave 
all  the  details  of  the  meeting  at  Bronie,  describing 
minutely  the  face,  figure  and  toilet  of  the  mysteri- 
ous lady,  but  Poniatowski  was  unable  to  divine 
who  it  could  have  been,  and  was  about  to  give  up 
his  search  in  despair,  when  the  indiscreet  chatter  of 
Mme.  Walewska's  companion  enlightened  him,  and, 
knowing  the  Emperor's  desire  to  cultivate  the 
acquaintance,  he  determined  that  she  should  come 
to  the  ball. 

Mme.  Walewska  refused  absolutely  to  go,  and 
remained  unmoved  even  by  his  argument  that  under 
Heaven  she  might  perhaps  be  an  instrument  towards 
the  rehabilitation  of  her  country.  Hardly  had  the 
prince  departed  when  the  principal  representatives 
of  Poland  were  announced  ;  they  were  statesmen, 
whose  authority  was  based  upon  public  esteem  and 
consideration  and  the  deference  due  to  their  irre- 
proachable conduct  and  wisdom ;  all  of  these  men 
foresaw  what  benefit  might  accrue  to  Poland  from 
Napoleon's  admiration  for  one  of  its  daughters  and 
they  joined  in  urging  her  acceptance  of  the  prince's 
invitation ;  their  arguments,  however,  failed  to 
move  her  and  she  was  still  firm  in  her  determination 
to  remain  at  home,  when  her  husband  arrived  and 
came  to  their  rescue.  M.  Walewska  was  igno- 
rant of  the  adventure  at  Bronie,  and  saw  in  the  in- 


200  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND. 

sistence  of  these  gentlemen  nothing  save  the  con- 
sideration due  his  rank  and  the  services  he  had 
rendered  his  country,  and  promptly  accepted  for  his 
wife.  Marie  pleaded,  almost  with  tears,  to  remain  at 
home,  but  her  husband  insisted,  ridiculed  her  fears, 
and  finally  commanded  that  she  should  go.  She 
made  one  condition,  however,  which  was,  that,  as  al- 
most all  the  other  ladies  had  already  been  presented, 
care  should  be  taken  that  her  presentation  should 
not  be  conspicuous. 

The  great  day  came,  and  her  husband  hurried 
her  toilet,  fearing  that  they  would  be  late  and 
reach  the  ball-room  after  the  Emperor  had  departed. 
M.  Walewski  would  have  liked  to  see  his  wife 
magnificently  apparelled,  and  he  found  great  fault 
with  the  severely  simple  dress  of  white  satin  which 
she  had  selected  to  wear  and  with  the  garland  of 
leaves  which  was  her  only  ornament  ;  others,  how- 
ever, were  not  of  his  opinion,  for  a  murmur  of 
admiration  greeted  her  entrance  into  the  ball-room. 
She  was  installed  between  two  ladies,  with  whom 
she  was,  unacquainted  and  was  feeling  strange  and 
uncomfortable,  when  Prince  Poniatowski  stationed 
himself  behind  her.  "Your  arrival  has  been  im- 
patiently awaited,  madame,"  he  murmured,  uand 
your  entrance  to  the  ball-room  greeted  with  pleasure  ; 
your  name  has  been  repeated  until  it  must  be  known 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  201 

by  heart,  and  after  scrutinizing  your  husband  some- 
one said,  shrugging  his  shoulders :  '  Poor  little 
victim  ; '  and  I  am  commanded  to  invite  you  to 
dance." 

" I  do  not  dance,"  she  answered,  "and  have  no 
inclination  towards  that  form  of  amusement." 

The  prince  explained  that  his  invitation,  being  at 
the  instigation  of  the  Emperor,  was  paramount  to 
an  order,  that  His  Majesty  was  watching  them  and 
that  if  she  refused  he  should  be  considered  at  fault, 
and  also  that  the  success  of  the  ball  largely  depended 
upon  her  ;  but  persuasion  and  explanation  were 
alike  wasted.  Mme.  Walewska  positively  refused 
to  dance,  and  the  prince  had  but  one  resource  :  to 
find  Duroc,  who  received  his  confidences  and  repeated 
them  to  Napoleon. 

Mme.  Walewska  was  soon  the  centre  of  a  bril- 
liant circle  of  staff-officers  who  were  charmed  by  her 
beauty  and  unaffected  manners,  for  her  presence, 
which  was  an  open  secret  to  the  Poles,  was  not  un- 
derstood by  the  French.  Napoleon,  however,  was 
not  long  in  effecting  the  removal  of  his  unconscious 
rivals  ;  Louis  de  Perigord  seemed  the  most  devoted 
of  her  admirers,  so  the  Emperor  made  a  sign  to 
Berthier  and  ordered  him  to  send  the  aide-de-camp 
at  once  to  the  sixth  corps  on  the  Passarge,  and  the 
next  in  order  was  Bertrand,  who,  on  a  second  sigL\, 


202  NAPOLEON,  LOVER.   AND   HUSBAND. 

was  ordered  to  report  to  Prince  Jerome  before 
Breslau. 

The  Emperor  wandered  about  the  ball-room  with 
the  intention  of  making  himself  generally  agreeable, 
but  his  preoccupation  led  him  to  make  singularly 
mal  a  propos  speeches  ;  he  asked  a  young  girl  how 
many  children  she  had,  a  homely  old  maid,  if  her 
husband  was  jealous  of  her  beauty,  and  inquired  of 
a  lady  who  was  enormously  stout  if  she  was  very  fond 
of  dancing.  When  he  arrived  before  Mme.  Walewska 
her  neighbors  nudged  her  as  a  sign  that  she  should 
rise,  and  standing,  her  eyes  fixed  on  the  ground, 
strangely  pale,  she  awaited  the  Emperor's  pleasure. 
"  White  upon  white  is  not  becoming,  madame,"  he 
said  aloud,  then  added  in  a  low  tone,  i '  This  is  scarcely 

the  reception  I  expected "  He  paused  and  looked 

at  her  attentively,  but  as  she  made  no  response  he 
passed  on,  and  a  few  moments  afterwards  left  the 
ball-room. 

His  departure  was  the  signal  for  greater  liberty 
of  action,  each  recounting  to  her  neighbor  what  the 
Emperor  had  said  to  her,  and  all  anxious  to  learn 
what  he  said  to  Mme.  Walewska,  and  to  what  he  re- 
ferred when  saying  that  he  had  expected  a  different 
greeting,  for  those  nearest  had  caught  his  remarks, 
and  the  wildest  curiosity  prevailed  regarding  it, 
some  daring  spirits  even  going  so  far  as  to  question 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  203 

Marie  herself.  As  soon  as  possible  she  made  her 
escape,  but  on  the  way  home  her  husband  also 
catechised  her,  and,  receiving  unsatisfactory  replies, 
announced  that  he  had  accepted  an  invitation  for 
a  dinner  at  which  the  Emperor  was  to  be  present, 
and  requested  her  to  order  a  more  elegant  costume 
for  that  occasion.  Marie  was  on  the  point  of  telling 
him  of  her  imprudent  trip  to  Bronie,  of  its  conse- 
quences up  to  date  and  her  disquietude  ;  but  he  left 
her  brusquely  at  the  door  of  her  room,  which  she 
had  hardly  entered,  before  her  maid  handed  her  a 
note  which  she  had  some  difficulty  in  deciphering  : 

"I  HAVE  SEEN,  ADMIRED  AND  DESIRED  BUT  YOU 
THIS  EVENING.  A  KIND  AND  PROMPT  ANSWER  ALONE 
CAN  CALM  THE  IMPATIENT  ARDOR  OF 

"  N." 

Mme.  Walewska  crushed  the  note  in  her  hand, 
disgusted  and  revolted  by  its  language.  "  There 
is  no  answer  ? "  she  said  to  her  maid,  who  departed 
to  convey  her  mistress's  reply  to  the  bearer  of  the 
note  ;  but  the  messenger  who  waited  in  the  street 
was  no  other  than  Prince  Poniatowski,  who  did  not 
propose  to  be  so  easily  beaten,  and,  despite  the 
servant's  remonstrances,  entered  the  house  and  fal- 
lowed her  to  her  mistress's  room  with  such  prompti- 
tude, that  Mme.  Walewska  had  barely  time  to  lock 


204  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK    AND   HUSBAND. 

the  door.  From  behind  the  closed  door  yhe  informed 
the  prince  that  her  decision  was  immutable  ;  and  at 
the  risk  of  a  scandal  the  prince  alternately  implored 
and  menaced,  but  was  at  last  obliged  to  depart,  dis- 
comfited and  angry.  She  was  scarcely  awake  on 
the  following  morning,  when  her  maid  handed 
her  a  second  note,  which  she  did  not  open,  but  sealing 
it  up  in  an  envelope  with  the  first  ordered  that  both 
should  be  handed  to  the  messenger. 

Before  noon  her  drawing-room  was  crowded,  all 
the  personages  of  the  nation,  influential  members 
of  the  government,  Prince  Joseph  and  Grand  Mar- 
shal Duroc,  being  assembled  there,  but  Marie,  pre- 
texting a  sick  headache,  remained  in  her  own  room 
stretched  out  upon  a  lounge.  Her  husband  was 
furious,  and  to  prove  that  he  was  not  jealous,  as 
was  artfully  insinuated,  he  conducted  the  prince 
and  his  countrymen  into  his  wife's  apartment,  and 
in  their  presence  insisted  that  she  should  allow  her- 
self to  be  presented  and  should  attend  the  dinner, 
to  which  she  was  bidden.  To  this  the  Poles  agreed 
in  chorus,  and  one  of  their  number,  an  old  man, 
who  was  highly  respected,  and  whose  advice  was 
deferentially  listened  to  by  the  chiefs  of  the  govern- 
ment, fixed  his  eyes  sharply  upon  her,  and  said  in  an 
impressive  manner  :  "I  hope  that  between  this  and 
the  date  set  for  the  dinner  your  indisposition  will 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  205 

have  disappeared,  io_r  you  cannot  refuse  the  invita- 
tion without  laying  yourself  open  to  the  accusation 
of  lack  of  love  for  your  country." 

How  could  this  inexperienced  girl  of  eighteen, 
alone,  without  a  friend  to  counsel  her,  defend  her- 
self against  so  many  ? — she  did  her  best,  but  the 
pressure  was  too  great.  She  was  obliged  to  rise,  and, 
obeying  her  husband's  mandate,  called  upon  Mme. 
de  Vauban,  who  was  Prince  Joseph's  mistress, 
solicited  her  advice  as  to  the  toilet  she  should  wear, 
and  asked  her  to  be  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of 
court  etiquette  ;  thus  she  was  delivered  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy,  for  Mme.  Vauban  was  deep  in 
the  intrigue. 

N6e  Pugot-Barbentane,  Mme.  de  Vauban  had  lived 
at  Versailles  and  was  familiar  with  the  life  of  the 
old  court  ;  at  the  outbreak  of  the  revolution  she  fled 
to  Warsaw,  and  there  lived  publicly  with  the  prince, 
who  had  previously  been  her  lover.  She  thought 
that  to  give  a  mistress  to  a  sovereign,  whether 
he  be  Louis  XV.  or  Napoleon,  was  the  most  im- 
portant mission  which  a  courtesan  could  fill,  and 
as  for  scruples,  purity,  duty,  or  conjugal  fidelity — 
it  never  occurred  to  her  that  a  woman  of  the  world 
would  balance  such  virtues  against  certain  advan- 
tages. Mme.  de  Vauban  was  clever  enough  to  per- 
ceive that  the  woman  with  whom  she  had  now  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

deal  could  not  be  tempted  by  worldly  considera- 
tions, that  she  must  manoeuvre  skilfully  and  make 
use  of  weapons  with  which  she  was  not  familiar, 
before  she  could  overcome  Mme.  Walewska's 
scruples,  and,  feeling  unequal  to  the  task,  she  con- 
tented herself  with  paying  her  visitor  numerous 
compliments,  advising  as  to  her  dress  and  conduct, 
and  protesting  friendship  ;  then  she  turned  Marie 
over  to  a  young  woman  who  lived  with  her  some- 
what as  a  companion.  This  lady,  Mme.  Abramo- 
wicz,  was  a  divorcee  without  fortune,  young,  gay, 
and  clever,  and,  being  nearer  Mme.  Walewska's  age, 
possessed  every  requisite  to  attract  her  confidence, 
even  the  most  exalted  sentiments  of  patriotism — 
real  or  feigned.  She  insinuated  herself  into  Mme. 
"Walewska's  confidence  and  won  the  affections  of  the 
lonely  girl,  who  had  never  had  an  intimate  friend, 
and  whose  heart  longed  for  a  confidante.  Mme. 
Abramowicz  ingratiated  herself  with  the  husband, 
and  was  inseparable  from  the  wife,  and  when  she 
thought  that  the  time  was  ripe,  she  read  to  Mme. 
Walewska  a  letter,  signed  by  the  most  prominent 
men  of  the  nation,  and  members  of  the  provisional 
government : 

"  Madame  : 
"  Slight  causes  sometimes  produce  great  results, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  207 

and  women  from  time  immemorial  have  exercised 
great  influence  over  the  world's  politics  ;  ancient 
history,  as  well  as  modern,  bears  testimony  to  this 
fact,  and  so  long  as  men  are  dominated  by  passion 
women  can  sway  them. 

"  Had  you  been  a  man,  you  would  gladly  have 
given  your  life  to  your  country  ;  as  a  woman  you 
cannot  serve  as  her  defender,  but  there  are  other 
sacrifices  which  you  can  make  for  Poland,  and 
which  you  should  gladly  impose  upon  yourself, 
however  painful  they  may  be. 

^Do-you- imagine  that  it  was  for  love  that  Esther 
gave  herself  to  Ahasverus  ?  Does  not  the  fact  that  he 
inspired  her  with  such  fear,  that  she  swooned  when 
he  looked  upon  her,  prove  that  affection  had  no 
part  in  that  union  ?  She  sacrificed  herself  for  her 
country,  and;  to  her  everlasting  honor,  she  saved  it. 
May  history  record  as  much  for  your  glory  and  our 
happiness  ! 

"  Are  you  not  daughter,  sister,  wife  and  mother 
to  zealous  Poles  who,  with  us,  form  the  national 
sheaf,  the  strength  of  which  can  be  augmented  only 
by  the  number  and  union  of  those  who  compose  it. 
Remember,  madame,  the  words  of  a  celebrated  man, 
a  saint  and  pious  ecclesiastic,  Fenelon,  who  wrote  : 
'  Men,  in  whom  all  public  authority  is  vested,  can 
achieve  no  effective  result  from  their  deliberations, 


208  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND   HUSBAND. 

if  women  do  not  aid  in  the  execution  of  their  de- 
signs.' Heed  his  voice,  which  unites  with  ours,  thai 
you  may  promote  the  happiness  of  your  country- 
men, of  twenty  million  souls." 

Thus  every  spring  was  brought  into  play  to  pre- 
cipitate the  downfall  of  this  young  woman,  who,  in- 
experienced and  guileless,  had  neither  a  husband  in 
whom  she  could  confide,  nor  parents  to  defend  her, 
nor  friends  anxious  to  save  her  ;  the  family,  country 
and  religion  were  invoked  to  force  her  compliance, 
all  conspired  against  her,  and  to  complete  the  work, 
she  was  made  to  read  the  note  from  Napoleon,  which 
she  had  once  refused  to  open. 

"I  fear,  madame,"  he  wrote,  "that  I  have  dis- 
pleased you  ;  yet  I  had  a  right  to  hopo  the  contrary 
— was  I  so  mistaken  ?  Your  enthusiasm  has  waned 
while  mine  has  augmented.  You  have  banished 
sleep  from  my  pillow  !  Ah,  deign  to  give  a  little 
joy  to  a  poor  heart  which  is  ready  to  adore  you.  Dc 
you  then  find  it  so  difficult  to  write  to  me  ?  You 
owe  me  two  letters. 

"K" 

Her  husband,  proud  of  the  success  of  his  wife,  for 
which  he  took  all  the  credit,  without  understanding 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  209 

the  situation  nor  having  the  slightest  suspicion  of 
what  was  expected  of  her — for  he  was  an  honest 
gentleman — insisted  upon  her  going  to  the  much 
discussed  dinner.  The  poor  girl  herself  understood 
that  the  step  was  a  decisive  one  and  committed  her  ; 
but  all  the  world  wished  it,  and  she  yielded.  Her 
drawing-room  was  constantly  filled  with  visitors, 
who  mutely  felicitated  her,  and  in  order  that  she 
should  not  change  her  mind  during  the  time  pre- 
ceding the  dinner,  Mme.  Abramowicz  kept  her 
company. 

On  her  way  to  the  dinner,  Mme.  Walewska  com- 
forted herself  with  the  idea  that  as  she  did  not  love 
Napoleon,  she  had  nothing  to  fear,  and  on  her  arrival 
the  marked  attentions  of  some  of  the  guests,  who 
already  had  in  view  the  solicitation  of  her  protection, 
completely  disgusted  her  with  her  supposed  conquest 
and  she  was  firmly  resolved  to  remain  unapproach- 
able when  the  Emperor  appeared.  Napoleon  was 
more  self-possessed  that  evening  than  at  the  ball, 
and  better  prepared  to  be  generally  courteous  ;  when 
Marie  was  presented  he  said  simply  :  "I  thought 
madame  was  indisposed,  has  she  quite  recovered  ?  " 
and  this  purposely  simple  speech  overthrew  her 
suspicions  and  even  struck  her  as  being  extremely 
delicate. 

At  table  she  was  placed  next  the  grand  marshal 
14 


210  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

and  a,l most  opposite  the  Emperor,  who,  when  all 
were  seated,  began  in  his  curt  fashion  to  question 
his  neighbors  upon  the  history  of  Poland ;  he  ap- 
peared to  listen  attentively  and  to  take  a  deep  in- 
terest in  the  subject,  but  whether  speaking  or  listen- 
ing his  eyes  never  left  Mme.  Walewska  save  to  ex- 
change a  glance  with  Duroc,  with  whom  he  seemed 
to  have  established  a  sort  of  optical  telegraph.  It 
seemed  as  though  the  remarks  which  Duroc  ad- 
dressed to  his  neighbor  were  dictated  by  a  glance  or 
gesture  of  the  Emperor,  who  kept  up  all  the  time  a 
grave  discussion  upon  European  politics  ;  once  he 
lifted  his  hand  to  the  left  side  of  his  coat,  Duroc 
hesitated  for  a  moment,  looked  attentively  at  his 
master,  and  at  last,  divining  what  was  required  of 
him,  heaved  an  "  Ah  !  "  of  satisfaction.  It  was  the 
bouquet  of  Bronie  which  was  in  question  and  Duroc 
hastened  to  ask  Mme.  Walewska  what  had  become 
of  it. 

Marie  responded  that  she  religiously  preserved  the 
flowers  which  the  Emperor  had  given  her  for  her 
^on.  "Ah!  madame,"  said  the  grand  marshal, 
"you  must  permit  us  to  offer  you  something  more 
worthy  of  you."  Imagining  that  his  speech  had  a 
double  meaning  she  retorted  loudly,  flushed  with 
anger.  "I  care  only  for  flowers!"  Duroc  was 
dura  founded,  but    after    a    moment  recovered  his 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  211 

presence  of  mind  sufficiently  to  say:  "Very  well, 
madame,  we  will  pluck  laurels  from  your  native  soil 
for  you  ;  "  and  observing  that  that  touched  her, 
knew  that  his  second  speech  had  been  a  lucky  one. 

When  the  company  rose  from  the  table  and  re- 
turned to  the  drawing-room,  the  Emperor  took  ad- 
vantage of  the  confusion  to  approach  her  and  fixing 
upon  her  hia_strangely_ piercing  eyes,  the  power  of 
which  no  human  being  had  ever  resisted,  he  took  her 
hand  and  pressing  it,  said  in  a  low  tone  :  "  With 
eyes  so  sweet  and  tender,  with  such  an  expression  of 
goodness,  it  cannot  possibly  be  a  pleasure  to  torture 
a  man,  or  else  appearances  are  deceitful  and  you  are 
the  most  coquettish  of  women,  the  most  cruel  of 
your  sex." 

On  the  Emperor's  departure  the  party  broke  up 
and  Mme.  Walewska  was  persuaded  to  go  to  Mme.  de 
Vauban's  where  a  number  of  the  dinner  guests  and 
those  who  were  initiated  into  the  intrigue,  awaited 
her  coming ;  upon  entering  the  room  she  was  im- 
mediately surrounded  by  those  who  flattered  her  and 
assured  her  that  the  Emperor  had  had  eyes  only  for 
ner,  that  she  alone  could  plead  the  nation's  cause, 
touch  his  heart  and  determine  him  to  rehabilitate 
Poland.  Little  by  little,  as  if  in  obedience  to  some 
secret  understanding,  the  guests  departed,  leaving 
Marie  and  Mme.  Abramowicz  alone ;  almost  im- 


212  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

mediately  Duroc  was  announced  and  when  the  doors 
were  closed,  he  seated  himself  at  Mme.  Walewska's 
side  and  laid  a  letter  on  her  knee,  then  taking  her 
hand,  said  in  the  gentlest  possible  manner  :  "Can 
you  refuse  the  request  of  one  who  has  never  brooked 
refusal  ?  His  position,  though  glorious,  is  lonely  and 
sad,  and  it  lies  in  your  power  to  give  him  some  hours, 
at  least,  of  happiness. "  Duroc  spoke  at  great  length 
but  she  made  no  answer  and  hiding  her  face  in  her 
hands  wept  and  sobbed  like  a  child  ;  the  other 
woman,  however,  answered  for  her  and  guaranteed 
that  she  would  go  to  the  rendezvous.  When  Marie 
indignantly  remonstrated,  she  shamed  her  with  her 
lack  of  patriotism,  telling  her,  that  she  was  a  rene- 
gade daughter  of  Poland,  that  they  should  all  will- 
ingly sacrifice  anything  for  him  who  would  be  their 
country's  deliverer,  and  finally  bowed  the  grand 
marshal  out,  assuring  him  that  Mme.  Walewska 
would  finally  comply  with  his  master's  wishes  ;  then 
opening  the  note  which  he  had  brought,  Mme. 
Abramowicz  read  it  aloud  : 

"  There  are  moments  when  the  weight  of  my  rank 
seems  more  than  I  can  bear,  and  I  am  now  living 
through  such  a  period.  How  can  I  satisfy  the  de- 
sires and  needs  of  a  hungry  heart  which  longs  to 
throw  itself  at  your  feet  and  is  arrested  only  by 
weighty    considerations    which  paralyze  its  most 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  218 

ardent  desires  and  deprive  me  of  freedom  of  action  ? 
Oh,  if  you  would  but  come  to  me  !  You  alone  can 
surmount  the  obstacles  which  separate  us  ;  my  friend 
Doroc  will  arrange  everything. 

' ( Come_to„me,  and  all  your  desires  shall  be  fulfilled, 
and  your  country  will  be  dearer  to  me  when  you 
have  taught  me  to  love  it. 

"N." 

Thus  the  fate  of  Poland  lay  in  her  little  hands  ;  it 
was  not  her  countrymen  alone  who  said  so,  but  the 
great  conqueror  himself,  who  affirmed  it  ;  it  de- 
pended upon  her,  that  her  country  should  be  reborn, 
the  shameful  divisions  abolished,  the  torn  parts  re- 
united, and  the  White  Eagle  fly  proudly  over  all. 
It  was  no  wonder  that  such  a  glorious  dream  almost 
intoxicated  her  ;  yet  she  still  struggled,  claiming 
that  she  was  not  equal  to  playing  such  a  role,  to 
which  they  answered,  that  she  should  not  lack  for 
advisers,  and  had  only  to  follow  their  counsel.  Her 
modesty  revolting,  she  was  told  that  the  sentiments 
she  entertained  were  provincial,  ridiculous  and  out 
of  date,  that  many  another  woman,  quite  as  virtuous 
as  she,  would  willingly  exchange  places  with  her 
and  lend  Poland  the  aid  of  their  beauty  were  the 
chance  given  them, — why,  they  asked,  should  she 
doubt  her  ability  to  do  good  ?    Though  an  Emperor, 


214  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

Napoleon  was  but  a  man — and  a  man  in  love  ;  she 
would  be  able  to  wind  him  around  her  finger  and 
achieve  the  realization  of  the  patriot's  brightest 
dreams.  Thus  at  last  they  wrung  from  her  a  reluc- 
tant consent.  She  refused,  however,  to  answer 
Napoleon's  letter,  feeling  physically  incapable  of 
writing,  and  they  left  her  alone  to  advise  together, 
taking  the  precaution,  however,  to  lock  her  in,  lest 
she  might  change  her  mind  and  run  away  ;  but  she 
was  not  thinking  of  such  a  thing,  she  reflected,  or 
rather,  exhausted  by  the  prolonged  struggle,  she 
dreamed. 

She  wondered  if  she  could  not  without  losing  her 
self-esteem  have  an  interview  with  Napoleon,  inspire 
him  with  friendship  and  respect  and  persuade  him 
to  listen  to  the  prayer  of  her  people  ;  surely  he  would 
not  force  his  caresses  upon  her,  knowing  that  she 
had  no  love  to  give  him,  for  she  would  tell  him  that 
he  inspired  her  only  with  sentiments  of  enthusiasm, 
admiration  and  gratitude.  There  was  nothing  de- 
praved in  the  imagination  of  this  girl  of  eighteen, 
whose  only  knowledge  of  love  was  derived  from  the 
almost  platonic  affection  of  her  septuagenarian  hus- 
band, and  drifting  into  the  world  of  dreams,  where 
the  virtue  of  woman  has  nothing  to  fear  from  the 
passions  of  man,  where  the  senses  are  abolished  and 
souls  speak  and  understand  each  other,  she  dreamed 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  215 

of  an  ideal  friendship,  which  should  both  comfort 
Napoleon  in  his  loneliness  and  benefit  Poland. 

The  conspirators,  having  settled  everything,  re- 
turned and  Mme.  Walewska  agreed  to  comply  with  all 
their  wishes,  only  stipulating  that  she  should  remain 
where  she  was  until  those  who  were  to  conduct  her 
to  Napoleon,  should  call ;  she  remained  all  the  next 
day,  which  dragged  by  slowly,  alternately  watching 
the  hands  of  the  clock  and  the  closed  door  by  which 
her  executioner  must  enter. 

At  half-past  ten  in  the  evening  some  one  knocked, 
and  Mme.  Abramowicz,  hastily  arraying  Marie  in  a 
hat  with  a  thick  veil  and  a  long  cloak,  which  com- 
pletely disguised  her  figure,  led  her  like  one  in  a 
dream  to  a  carriage  which  waited  at  the  street 
corner,  and  assisted  her  to  enter  it  ;  a  man  with  a 
long  coat  and  a  slouched  hat,  who  had  held  the  door 
open,  drew  up  the  step  and  took  a  seat  beside  her. 
Not  a  word  was  exchanged  on  the  way,  and  when 
the  carriage  drew  up  before  a  private  entrance  to 
the  grand  palace,  her  silent  companion  assisted  her 
to  leave  the  carriage  and  almost  carried  her  to  a 
door  which  was  opened  impatiently  from  within, 
and,  quietly  departing,  left  her  alone  with  Napo- 
leon. 

Blinded  by  tears  Mme.  Walewska  could  not  dis- 
cern the  features  of  the  Emperor  who  knelt  by  her 


21  (>  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

side,  took  her  hand,  and  began  speaking  to  her  in  a 
caressing  manner  ;  nor  was  she  clearly  conscious  of 
what  he  said  until  the  words  :  "  Your  old  husband  " 
escaped  him,  when  the  full  realization  of  the  ignominy- 
burst  upon  her  and  with  a  cry  of  horror  she  sprang 
to  her  feet  and  looked  about  for  means  to  escape. 

Napoleon  was  momentarily  paralyzed  with  sur- 
prise, not  knowing  what  to  make  of  this  woman, 
who  after  so  many  entreaties  had  yielded  to  his  solic* 
itations  and  granted  him  a  nocturnal  rendezvous, 
yet  who  now  manifested  such  unmistakable  and  un- 
affected horror  at  her  situation.  Not  holding  the  key 
to  her  presence  there,  he  questioned  an  instant  if 
she  was  not  acting  a  part  with  the  intent  to  increase 
his  desire,  but  her  grief  and  dismay  were  too  genuine, 
and  determined  to  solve  the  riddle  of  her  conduct,  he 
drew  her  gently  away  from  the  door  against  which 
she  was  leaning,  seated  her  in  an  arm-chair  and  began 
to  question  her  kindly  regarding  her  history ;  re- 
solved not  to  alarm  her,  he  sought  to  put  his  ques- 
tions in  a  manner  which  would  least  wound  and 
shock  her  sensibilities,  but  in  spite  of  his  kind  inten- 
tions, his  habitual  masterfulness  pierced  the  veil  of 
gentleness  and  he  could  only  obtain  brief  and  frag- 
mentary answers  from  the  trembling  woman,  but 
even  those  he  turned  to  weapons  against  herself. 
"Had  she  voluntarily  given  herself  to  the  man 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  217 

whose  name  she  bore,  was  it  for  rank  and  wealth 
that  she  had  sacrificed  her  youth  %  No  ; — then  who 
forced  her  to  unite  her  young  life  with  an  old  and 
decrepid  man  ?  Her  mother ; — then  why  had  she 
any  remorse,  since  the  marriage  was  not  of  her 
chosing  ? "  Marie  stammered  between  her  sobs  that 
it  was  her  duty  to  be  faithful,  that  that  which  God 
had  joined  together,  man  should  not  seek  to  sunder. 
Napoleon  could  not  control  his  mirth,  and  at  the 
sound  of  his  laughter  Mme.  Walewska's  tears  fell  all 
the  faster. 

More  and  more  mystified  and  correspondingly  in- 
terested by  this  woman,  the  like  of  whom  he  had 
never  before  encountered,  he  was  the  more  deter- 
mined to  discover  the  solution  to  her  presence  in  his 
apartments.  Here  was  a  woman  who  wished  to  be  a 
faithful  wife,  to  hold  fast  to  the  principles  of  her 
religion,  a  woman  who  was  unquestionably  pure  and 
virtuous,  and  yet,  she  was  there  in  his  apartments 
at  the  dead  of  night,  in  compliance  with  his  wishes. 
Never  had  his  curiosity  been  so  aroused,  and  he 
pressed  his  questions,  asking  about  the  education 
she  had  received,  the  life  she  had  led  in  the  country 
and  the  society  she  frequented,  of  her  mother  and 
family, — he  wished  to  know  everything,  even  to  the 
name  she  had  received  at  baptism  :  the  sweet  name 
of  Marie,  by  which  he  ever  afterwards  called  her. 


218  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

At  two  in  the  morning  some  one  rapped  at  the 
door.  "  What  !  "  exclaimed  Napoleon,  "  so  soon  ? 
Well,  my  gentle  dove,  dry  your  tears  and  go  home 
to  rest ;  you  need  never  again  fear  the  Eagle,  for 
he  will  exert  no  other  influence  over  you  than  that 
of  passionate  love.  You  will  end  by  loving  him,  for 
he  will  be  everything  to  you — everything."  He 
assisted  her  to  fasten  her  mantle,  put  on  her  veil, 
and  conducted  her  to  the  door,  but  before  he  let  her 
out  he  exacted  a  promise  that  she  would  return  the 
following  night.  She  was  reconducted  to  her  home 
and  retired  almost  reassured,  it  seemed  as  if  her 
dream  might  be  realized,  for  as  Napoleon  had  been 
kind  and  tender  and  spared  her  that  time,  she 
fancied  it  would  be  the  same  in  the  future. 

At  nine  o'clock  the  following  morning  the  confi- 
dential friend  was  at  her  bedside,  holding  in  her 
hands  a  large  package,  which,  after  prudently  lock- 
ing the  door,  she  carefully  unwrapped,  and  drew 
forth  several  jewel-cases  in  red  morocco,  a  quantity 
of  hothouse  flowers  intermingled  with  branches  of 
laurel  and  a  sealed  letter  ;  but  scarcely  had  she  ex- 
posed to  view  a  magnificent  brooch  and  spray  of 
diamonds  than  Mme.  Walewska  snatched  them  from 
her  hands  and  flung  them  to  the  end  of  the  room, 
furious  that  they  should  have  been  sent  her.  She 
ordered  that  they  should  be  immediately  returned  ; 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  219 

she  wished  the  Emperor  to  comprehend  that  she  was 
not  for  sale,  and  that  if  she  gave  herself  to  him  it 
would  not  be  from  a  desire  for  jewels  ;  then,  unseal- 
ing the  letter,  she  read  : 

"  Marie,  my  sweet  Mane,  my  first  thought  is  for 
you,  my  greatest  desire  to  see  you  again  ;  you  will 
keep  your  promise  and  return,  will  you  not  ?  Other- 
wise the  Eagle  will  fly  to  you  !  Our  friend  tells  me 
we  shall  meet  at  dinner,  deign,  therefore,  to  accept 
this  bouquet  which  shall  establish  between  us  a  bond 
by  which  we  may  communicate  in  the  midst  of  the 
crowd  which  will  surround  us,  and  even  under  the 
gaze  of  others.  When  I  lay  my  hand  over  my  heart 
you  will  know  that  it  is  filled  with  thoughts  of  you 
and  you  can  respond  by  touching  your  bouquet. 
Love  me,  my  precious  Marie,  and  never  take  your 
hand  off  your  flowers. 

"N." 

The  letter  was  all  very  fine,  but  it  could  not  make 
her  accept  his  diamonds,  nor  even  the  flowers  and 
laurels.  She  had  an  excuse  ready  :  One  did  not 
wear  flowers  on  one's  dress  save  at  balls,  and  it  was 
to  a  dinner  she  was  going.  She  vainly  essayed  to 
excuse  herself  from  this  dinner,  but  she  was  forced 
to  fulfill  her  engagement  by  those  whose  ambitions 


220  NAPOLEON,  LOVEB   AND    HUSBAND. 

were  roused  and  who  firmly  believed  that,  through 
her,  they  would  see  their  dearest  wish  fulfilled. 
Her  husband  remained  perfectly  blind,  he  never  sus- 
pected for  a  moment  the  intrigue  which  was  being 
carried  on  about  him,  and  urgently  desired  her  to 
accept  all  invitations. 

On  her  arrival  at  the  house  where  the  dinner  was 
given,  she  was  immediately  surrounded  by  her  ac- 
quaintances and  by  those  who  were  anxious  to  be 
presented,  and  it  seemed  to  the  poor  woman  as  if  all 
these  strangers  were  cognizant  of  her  adventure 
of  the  night  previous.  The  Emperor  had  already 
arrived  and  appeared  dissatisfied,  he  frowned  and 
regarded  her  with  an  angry  expression,  his  eyes 
seeming  to  read  her  very  soul ;  as  he  advanced 
towards  her  she  trembled,  fearing  that  he  was  go- 
ing to  make  a  public  scene,  when  suddenly  recalling 
the  words  of  his  letter,  she  laid  her  hand  on  the 
place  where  his  flowers  should  have  been,  and  had 
the  satisfaction  of  seeing  his  contracted  features  re- 
lax into  a  smile  and  his  hand  respond  by  a  similar 
sign.  Before  going  to  table  he  called  Duroc  aside 
and  spoke  with  him  for  an  instant ;  she  had  barely 
taken  her  place  at  the  table,  where,  as  at  the  pre- 
ceding dinner,  she  was  seated  next  the  grand  mar- 
shal, when  he  attacked  her  about  the  bouquet  ;  she 
responded  haughtily  that  she  was  insulted  by  the 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  221 

diamonds,  and  wished  it  distinctly  understood  that 
she  would  accept  no  presents  of  that  kind,  that  the 
only  thing  which  could  repay  her  devotion  was  hope 
for  the  future  of  her  country.  "  Has  the  Emperor 
not  already  given  you  the  right  to  hope  ? "  retorted 
Duroc ;  then  he  recalled  to  her  a  number  of  acts 
which  proved  his  master's  good  faith,  and  through- 
out the  dinner  he  continued  to  talk  of  the  Emperor's 
affection  for  her,  the  loneliness  of  his  high  state,  and 
the  need  he  had  of  a  heart  which  would  love  and 
understand  him,  and  of  the  glory  of  the  mission 
which  was  hers,  reminding  her,  too,  of  her  promise 
to  return  to  the  palace  that  night. 

She  was  conducted  to  the  palace  with  the  same 
precautions  as  on  the  previous  evening,  and  found 
Napoleon  gloomy  and  thoughtful.  ' '  You  have  come 
at  last,"  he  said,  "  I  had  abandoned  all  hope  of  see- 
ing you  !  "  He  assisted  her  to  lay  aside  her  cloak 
and  hat,  and  when  she  was  seated,  stationed  him- 
self before  her,  and  commanded  her  to  explain  her 
conduct.  Why  did  she  go  to  Bronie  ?  Why  had  she 
sought  to  inspire  him  with  a  sentiment  which  she 
did  not  share  ?  Why  had  she  refused  his  flowers 
and  even  the  laurels  ?  Why  had  she  ever  made  a  ren- 
dezvous with  him  ?  What  were  her  intentions  when 
she  came  to  the  palace  ?  As  she  did  not  answer  he 
gave  way  to  a  paroxysm  of  anger  and  exclaimed : 


222  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

"  You  led  me  to  hope  for  everything  and  you  give 
nothing  ;  you  are  a  true  Pole,  and  your  actions  con- 
firm the  opinion  I  have  always  held  of  your  nation."' 

Moved  and  troubled  by  her  reception,  and  anxious 
to  know  what  he  thought  of  her  people,  she  said  : 
"  Ah,  Sire,  forgive  me,  and  tell  me  what  you  think 
of  us  Poles." 

He  informed  her  that  he  considered  the  Polish 
race  passionate  and  unstable,  emotional  and  lacking 
in  system  ;  that  their  enthusiasm  was  impetuous  and 
genuine,  but  short-lived,  and  that  this  portrait  of 
her  race  was  her  likeness.  Had  she  not  flown,  like 
one  crazed  with  enthusiasm,  to  gain  a  glimpse  of 
him  ?  Had  she  not  led  him  to  believe  by  her  earnest 
and  passionate  expressions  of  esteem  that  she  was 
most  kindly  disposed  towards  him  ?  He  had  allowed 
himself  to  be  duped,  but  she  must  know  that,  when 
anything  was  withheld  from  him,  it  became  the 
object  he  most  coveted,  and  that  nothing  could  daunt 
him  in  the  pursuit  of  it.  Whether  real  or  feigned, 
the  violence  of  his  excitement  grew  apace  and  Mme. 
Walewska  shrank  before  him.  "  I  want  you  to 
understand,"  he  thundered,  "  that  I  will  force  you 
to  love  me  !  I  have  already  lifted  the  name  of  your 
country  from  the  dust,  thanks  to  me  that  it  has 
not  been  wiped  from  the  face  of  the  earth  !  I  will  do 
more — but,  remember,    that   even   as   I   crush  this 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       223 

watch  in  my  hand,  so  shall  your  country  and  all 
your  hopes  be  crushed  if  you  push  me  to  extremes, 
repulse  my  love  and  refuse  me  yours." 

Overcome  by  this  violence,  Mme.  Walewska 
fainted — when  she  recovered  consciousness  she  no 
longer  belonged  to  herself. 

Henceforth  it  was  a  liaison,  if  one  can  so  desig- 
nate the  habit  she  acquired  of  going  nightly  to  the 
palace  and  passively  submitting  to  caresses  which 
she  hoped  would  some  day  bring  her  a  great  reward. 
Napoleon  established  a  provisional  government,  the 
embryo  of  an  army  and  several  companies  of  light 
cavalry  were  attached  to  his  guard  ;  but  it  was  not 
for  so  little  that  Mme.  Walewska  had  sacrificed  her 
virtue,  the  only  thing  which  could  content  her  and 
condone  her  conduct  in  her  own  eyes,  was  the  re- 
establishment  of  Poland  as  a  nation  and  a  state. 
Incapable  of  feigning  a  sentiment  which  she  did  not 
entertain,  or  a  passion  which  she  did  not  feel,  she 
had  none  of  the  requisites  for  the  domination  of  a 
lover,  and  was  not  even  cunning  enough  to  conceal 
the  motive  which  actuated  her.  Nightly  she  referred 
to  the  one  topic  which  interested  her  and  was  consoled 
by  promises  and  buoyed  by  hopes  ;  but  the  promises 
were  always  for  the  future,  in  the  present  there  was 
only  misery  which  seemed  interminable. 

She  met  with  no  censure  in  her  own  country  j 


224  NAPOLEON,  LOVEB  AND  HUSBAND. 

aside  from  her  husband,  whom  she  had  been  obliged 
to  leave,  all  hastened  to  do  her  honor,  not  as  a 
favorite  but  as  a  victim,  for  none  were  in  ignorance 
of  her  sacrifice,  and  by  all  she  was  esteemed,  re- 
spected and  pitied.  Her  husband's  own  sisters, 
Princess  Jablonowska  and  Countess  Birginska, 
constituted  themselves  her  chaperones  ;  had  she  so 
desired,  she  could  have  taken  the  first  place  in  War- 
saw's society  and  maintained  almost  regal  state  ; 
but  Mme.  Walewska  shunned  society,  lived  unpre- 
tentiously, and  gave  no  cause  for  enmity ;  there- 
fore, though  less  flattered,  she  received  greater  sym- 
pathy. 

To  a  society  which  concealed  oriental  habits  under 
a  veneer  of  French  elegance  and  customs,  which 
still  retained  the  moral  code  of  Catherine  the  Great, 
there  was  nothing  shocking  in  Mme.  Walewska's 
position.  There  was  no  fine  Polish  gentleman  of 
the  time  who  had  not  an  authenticated  mistress,  of 
whose  existence  his  wife  was  well  aware  and  to  whom 
she  exhibited  no  animosity  ;  scarcely  a  noble  did  not  | 
support,  at  some  one  of  his  country  seats,  one  or 
more  Georgian  favorites  ;  consequently,  as  he  did 
not  travel  with  a  harem  in  his  train,  Napoleon 
appeared  to  the  Poles  .j  a  singularly  chaste  sover- 
eign ;  when  he  established  himself  in  Warsaw  they 
felt  that  he  should  have  a  female  companion  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  225 

divert  him,  and  but  natural  and  right  to  secure  for 
him  the  society  of  the  only  woman  in  whom  he 
manifested  the  least  interest. 

Fortuitously,  the  Emperor  admired  a  woman  of 
exceptional  character  and  one  who  could  be  made 
politically  useful ;  virtuous,  unaffected,  disinterested, 
animated  solely  by  love  of  country,  incarnating  in 
her  person  the  best  traits  of  her  nation,  Marie 
Walewska  was  capable  of  inspiring  in  the  heart  of 
her  royal  lover  a  deep  and  lasting  affection,  and  the 
Poles  reasoned  that  she  would  become  like  a  second 
wife  to  Napoleon,  that,  without  sharing  his  imperial 
state  and  splendor,  she  would  fill  a  special  place  in 
his  life  and  be  an  ever-present  ambassadress  for 
Poland. 

Napoleon  was  alive  to  the  fact  that  Mme.  Walew- 
ska did  not  love  him  for  himself,  that  her  country 
held  the  first  place  in  her  heart,  indeed,  she  never 
essayed  to  make  him  think  otherwise,  but  frankly 
avowed  that  she  had  become  his  mistress  in  the 
hope  of  softening  his  heart  and  awakening  his  sym- 
pathies towards  her  unhappy  land,  and  he,  who 
usually  mistrusted  any  one  whom  he  suspected  of  a 
desire  to  make  use  of  him,  placed  implicit  confi- 
dence in  this  simple,  sincere  and  earnest  girl  ;  he 
knew  her  to  be  so  far  above  the  ordinary  ambitions 
of  women  that  he  longed  to  content  her,  and  keenly 


226  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

regretted  his  inability  to  bestow  the  one  boon  she 
coveted. 

"  Rest  assured,"  he  frequently  said  to  her,  "  that 
my  promises  to  you  shall  be  fulfilled.  I  have  already 
forced  Russia  to  relinquish  what  she  had  usurped  ; 
time  will  do  the  rest,  but  you  must  be  patient  ; 
politics  is  a  cord  which  snaps  if  subjected  to  too 
great  a  strain,  and  the  time  is  not  yet  ripe  for  the 
realization  of  your  hopes.  In  the  meanwhile,  your 
politicians  must  work,  the  country  must  be  organ- 
ized ;  you  are  rich  in  patriots  and  can  command 
plenty  of  brave  arms — honor  and  courage  start 
from  every  pore  of  you  Poles — but  that  will  not 
suffice,  there  must  be  great  unanimity." 

It  was  strange  how  this  man,  who  never  discussed 
politics  with  a  woman,  continually  recurred  to  the 
subject  of  Poland's  future,  and  discussed  with  her 
the  best  means  for  the  amelioration  of  her  country- 
men, how  to  benefit  all  classes  and  insure  a  united 
movement  even  if  at  the  expense  of  the  aristocracy. 

"You  well  know,"  he  said,  "that  I  love  your 
nation,  that  my  wishes  and  my  political  views  lead 
me  to  desire  its  entire  rehabilitation  ;  I  am  most 
willing  to  second  its  efforts  and  uphold  its  rights, 
and  all  that  I  can  do  without  endangering  the  in- 
terests of  France,  I  will  do  ;  but  remember  that  the 
distance  that  separates  us  is  tremendous,  that  what 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       227 

I  establish  here  to-day  may  be  annihilated  to-mor- 
row.  My  first  duty  is  to  France,  I  cannot  shed 
French  blood  for  a  cause  which  is  not  theirs,  nor 
arm  my  people  and  rush  to  your  succor  each  time 
that  it  may  be  necessary." 

From  these  grave  matters  he  would  turn  to  social 
gossip,  current  anecdotes  and  the  tittle-tattle  of  the 
drawing-room  with  a  rapidity  which  amazed  his 
listener.  He  wanted  her  to  inform  him  regarding 
the  private  life  of  every  personage  whom  he  en- 
countered, his  curiosity  was  insatiable  and  went 
into  the  minutest  details  ;  it  was  his  way  of  form- 
ing an  opinion  upon  the  leading  class  wherever  he 
found  himself,  and  here,  where  such  great  interests 
were  at  stake,  he  made  use  of  every  means  to  in- 
form himself.  From  the  accumulated  tales,  which 
engraved  themselves  upon  his  memory,  bits  of  in- 
formation regarding  this  one  and  that  one,  he  drew 
astute  conclusions  which  astonished  the  woman 
who  listened  and  showed  her  that  she  had  furnished 
him  with  arms  against  herself  ;  she  would  protest 
indignantly  against  the  deductions  he  drew  and 
the  judgments  he  pronounced  ;  the  quarrel  usually 
ending  with  his  giving  her  a  slight  tap  on  the 
cheek  and  exclaiming  :  "  Good  little  Marie,  you  are 
worthy  to  be  a  Spartan  and  to  have  a  country  ! " 

Napoleon  would  not  have  loved  Mme.  Walewska 


228  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

as  he  did,  had  he  not  taken  an  interest  in  her  toilet, 
in  which  matter  he  considered  himself  an  excellent 
judge,  having  once  written  to  Savary  :  "  You  know 
that  I  am  an  authority  upon  woman's  dress. "  From 
the  time  of  the  Consulate  he  had  selected  the  pres- 
ents sent  to  any  queen,  and  the  dress  of  the  court 
ladies  did  not  escape  his  criticism  ;  even  Josephine, 
whose  taste  in  dress  was  exquisite,  was  not  exempt. 
Ahove  all  he  disliked  sombre  costumes,  and  Mme. 
Walewska  insisted  upon  dressing  in  the  most  simple 
fashion  and  always  in  black,  white  or  gray,  which 
displeased  him  extremely,  and  regarding  which  he 
remonstrated  with  her,  and  she  retorted,  that  "a 
Polish  woman  should  wear  mourning  for  her  coun- 
try ;  when  you  resuscitate  it  I  will  wear  nothing 
but  rose-color." 

Thus  in  every  way  she  brought  him  back  to  the 
same  subject,  but  without  annoying  him,  so  great 
was  his  love  for  her.  It  did  not  suffice  him  to  see 
his  mistress  by  appointment,  he  desired  that  she 
should  attend  all  the  dinners  and  fetes  at  which  he 
was  obliged  to  be  present,  and  as  he  wished  to  be 
constantly  in  communication  with  her  he  initiated 
her  into  the  mysterious  system  by  which  he  com- 
municated with  Duroc,  and  she  became  more  expert 
at  it  than  the  grand  marshal  himself,  and  at  the 
very  instant  when  Napoleon  seemed  engrossed  in 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND.  229 

some  serious  subject  he  would  tell  her  in  his  sign 
language  that  his  heart  was  filled  with  thoughts  of 
her.  "When  she  expressed  her  astonishment  that  so 
great  a  general,  so  shrewd  a  politician,  should  con- 
descend to  such  boyish  means  of  communication,  he 
said  :  ' '  Eeflect  that  I  am  obliged  to  fill  with  dignity 
the  post  assigned  to  me,  I  have  the  honor  to  com- 
mand nations.  I  was  an  acorn,  I  have  become  an 
oak  and  I  am  watched  on  every  side  ;  this  situation 
obliges  me  to  play  a  role  which  is  not  always  easy, 
but  which  I  am  obliged  to  keep  up  in  order  to  pre- 
serve the  character  with  which  I  am  invested,  and 
while  I  must  play  the  monarch  for  all  the  world,  I 
love  to  be  your  subject,  and  how  can  I  manage  to 
tell  you  that  I  love  you  at  a  state  dinner  (which  I 
want  to  do  every  time  I  look  at  you),  unless  I  employ 
the  sign  language  ? " 

When  he  removed  his  headquarters  to  Fincken- 
stein  Marie  was  obliged  to  follow  him,  and  the 
melancholy  existence  she  led  there  resembled  closely 
that  which  she  had  once  led  at  Walewice  with  her 
old  husband.  The  long,  quiet  days  were  broken  only 
by  the  meals  which  she  ate  tete-a-tete  with  the  Em- 
peror, and  which  were  served  by  a  single  valet,  the 
rest  of  the  time  was  spent  in  reading  and  embroid- 
ering, and  her  only  distraction  was  watching  the 
parade  from  behind  closed  blinds.     It  was  the  life 


230  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

of  a  recluse  subject  to  the  will  of  a  master,  without 
society,  pleasure  or  distraction,  and  yet  it  satisfied 
her  better  than  the  brilliant  society  which  she  had 
left  at  Warsaw.  Thus  Mme.  Walewska  realized 
the  type  of  woman  which  he  had  hoped  to  find  in 
Josephine  :  sweet,  complaisant,  timid,  attentive, 
unambitious  and  seemingly  without  will,  who  lived 
only  for  him  and  who,  though  she  asked  a  favor  of 
him,  asked  so  colossal  a  one  that  it  became  imper- 
sonal and  impossible  of  conception  save  by  a  soul 
singularly  pure  and  disinterested,  and  to  hope  to 
receive  it  from  the  hands  of  a  mortal,  was  to  think 
of  him  almost  as  a  god  ;  all  this  appealed  strongly 
to  Napoleon  and  augmented  his  Polish  love's  hold 
on  him. 

When  the  Emperor  was  about  to  leave  Poland, 
without  having  realized  the  dream  for  whose  sake 
Mme.  Walewska  had  given  herself  to  him  when, 
despairing  and  disillusioned,  Marie  refused  to  follow 
him  to  Paris  and  announced  her  intention  to  retire 
into  the  heart  of  the  country,  there  to  await  in  sad- 
ness and  solitude  the  fulfilment  of  his  vows,  it 
became  his  turn  to  supplicate  :  "  I  know,"  he  said, 
"  that  you  can  live  without  me,  that  your  heart  is 
not  mine  ;  but  you  are  good,  kind  and  generous,  can 
you  find  it  in  your  heart  to  deprive  me  of  my  only 
happiness — of  the  few  moments  that  I  spend  each 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  /*»0  HUSBAND.       231 

day  with  you  ?  You  are  my  sole  joy,  the  one  being 
who  brightens  my  life,  and  yet  I  am  supposed  to  be 
the  most  highly  blessed  of  mortals."  His  tone  was 
so  bitter,  his  smile  so  sad,  that,  overwhelmed  by  a 
new  sentiment  of  pity  for  this  master  of  the  world, 
she  promised  to  follow  him  to  Paris. 

Mme.  Walewska  reached  Paris  in  the  beginning 
of  the  year  1808,  and  thenceforth  this  mysterious 
liaison,  to  which  Napoleon  was  sometimes  unfaith- 
ful, but  which  was  nevertheless  the  grand  passion 
of  his  life,  was  established  on  so  strange  a  footing 
that,  if  one  could  not  find  its  confirmation  in  isolated 
details  and  dates  which  are  authenticated  by  divers 
witnesses,  it  would  be  difficult  to  follow  the  chain  of 
events  and  one  would  not  dare  to  affirm  the  con- 
tinuity of  facts  which  the  best  informed  contempo- 
raries ignored. 

It  is  known  that  during  the  campaign  of  1809 
Mme.  Walewska  went  to  Vienna,  where  an  elegant 
establishment  awaited  her  near  the  Palace  of  Schoen- 
brunn,  that  she  became  enceinte,  and  after  peace  was 
declared  went  to  Walewice  for  her  confinement,  and 
that  there,  on  the  4th  of  May,  1810,  Alexandre-Flo- 
rian-Joseph  Colonna- Walewska,  was  born.  Know- 
ing so  much,  have  we  not  a  right  to  question 
whether  Napoleon's  hesitation  when  treating  with 
Austria,  his  indecision  regarding  the  fate  of  Poland 


232  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

was  not  due  to  the  presence  of  her  to  whom  he 
had  solemnly  promised  the  rehabilitation  of  her 
country  ? 

What  contemporaries  do  not  tell  us  is  that  towards 
the  close  of  1810,  Mine.  Walewska,  accompanied  by 
her  sister-in-law  the  Princess  Jablonowska,  and  her 
infant  son,  returned  to  Paris,  where  she  lived  first  in 
a  pretty  house  on  the  Chaussee  d'Antin,  afterwards 
at  No.  2  rue  du  Houssaie  and  then  at  No.  48  rue  de  la 
Victoire.  Every  morning  the  Emperor  sent  to  ask 
her  orders  ;  boxes  in  all  the  theatres  were  placed  at 
her  disposal ;  the  doors  of  the  museums  opened  to 
her  ;  Corvisart  was  charged  to  look  after  her  health 
and  Duroc  to  see  that  her  every  desire  was  satisfied 
and  her  life  made  as  agreeable  and  easy  as  possible. 
The  following  anecdote  gives  an  example  of  her 
power : 

At  Spa,  a  young  Englishman  indulged  in  a  joke 
of  doubtful  taste  at  the  expense  of  the  Princess 
Jablonowska.  On  her  return  to  Paris  the  Princess 
invited  him  to  accompany  Mme.  Walewska  and  her- 
self to  the  museum  of  artillery  ;  in  the  gallery 
where  armor  was  displayed  the  party  stopped  before 
the  armor  worn  by  Jeanne  d' Arc,  and  while  the  young 
man  was  looking  at  it  the  Maid  of  France  opened 
her  arms  and,  seizing  him,  pressed  him  violently  to 
her  heart ;  suffocating,  he  struggled  to  escape,  but  it 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND.  233 

was  only  upon  the  order  of  Mme.  Walewska  that 
Jeanne  d'Arc  released  him.  Knowing  the  jealousy 
with  which  Napoleon  guarded  his  museums,  is  this 
not  a  positive  proof  of  her  power  ? 

Whenever  he  could  escape  from  the  cares  of  state 
the  Emperor  went  to  her,  or  had  her  come  to  the 
chateau  with  her  son,  upon  whom  he  had  conferred 
the  title  of  count  of  the  Empire.  None  in  the  com- 
pany, with  the  exception  of  the  Poles,  suspected  their 
relations,  and  Mme.  Walewska  went  little  into 
society  and  received  only  a  few  compatriots ;  her 
household  was  mounted  upon  a  modest  footing  and 
her  conduct  extremely  circumspect.  When  she 
went  to  take  the  waters  at  Spa  her  sister-in-law  ac- 
companied her,  and  it  was  at  her  sister-in-law's 
home,  a  house  at  Mons-sur-Orge,  called  the  chateau 
de  Bretigny,  which  was  rented  from  the  Duchesse 
de  Richelieu,  that  she  passed  the  summer.  They 
essayed  vainly  to  draw  her  into  society,  but  her 
greatest  preoccupation  was  to  hide  from  the  world 
the  relations  of  which  the  majority  of  women  would 
have  been  proud.  Her  country  home  was  situated 
in  a  secluded  spot  and  conducted  in  an  extremely 
simple  style,  but  it  was  her  universe,  and  she  left  it 
as  seldom  as  possible  ;  nevertheless,  she  was  obliged 
to  accept  Josephine's  repeated  invitations  to  go  to 
Malmaison  with  her  son,  whom  the  Empress  loaded 


234  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

with  presents  and  playthings,  but  it  does  not  appear 
that  she  mingled  in  court  society  before  the  year 
1813,  and  it  is  only  at  that  epoch  that  in  her  person- 
al accounts  two  court-dresses  are  mentioned  ;  one 
was  a  dress  of  black  velvet  with  gold-spangled  tulle, 
the  other  of  white  tulle  ;  however  recherche  her  cos- 
tumes may  have  appeared  she  was  certainly  not  an 
extravagant  woman,  for  her  annual  bills  at  Leroy's 
never  exceeded  six  thousand  francs. 

It  was  needless  for  her  to  appear  at  court  in  order 
to  recall  herself  to  Napoleon's  memory,  proof  of 
which  lies  in  a  letter  written  by  him  from  Nogent, 
the  8th  of  February,  1814  ;  in  the  midst  of  the  terrible 
strain  incident  to  the  French  campaign,  on  the  day 
following  the  battle  of  Brienne,  and  on  the  eve  of 
that  of  Champaubert,  he  thought  of  Mme.  Walewska 
and  endeavored  to  secure  her  future.  He  had 
charged  the  treasurer-general,  M.  de  La  Bouillerie  to 
settle  fifty  thousand  pounds  upon  the  young  Count 
Walewska  in  such  fashion  that,  in  the  event  of  his 
death,  his  mother  should  be  his  heir,  and  the  idea 
that  all  the  formalities  had  not  been  fulfilled  caused 
him  to  write  this  letter  : 

"  I  have  received  your  letter  relative  to  young 
Walewska,  I  give  you  carte  blanche  to  do  whatever 
is  proper  ;  but  act  at  once.     That  which  preoccupies 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  235 

me  most  at  present  is  first  that  boy  and  then  his 
mother. 

"N." 

Mme.  Walewska  knew  nothing  of  all  this,  and 
there  never  was  a  more  disinterested  heart  than 
hers.  During  the  last  days  at  Fontainebleau  when 
the  Emperor,  abandoned  by  all,  had  sought  to  find 
in  death  a  refuge  which  destiny  refused  him,  she 
hastened  to  his  side  and  spent  an  entire  night  in  an 
antechamber  awaiting  his  commands.  Napoleon,  ab- 
sorbed in  his  gloomy  reflections,  exhausted  by  the 
physical  crisis  through  which  he  had  passed,  never 
thought  of  asking  for  her  until  she  had  already  been 
gone  an  hour.  "  Poor  woman,"  he  said,  "she  will 
believe  herself  forgotten." 

He  little  understood  her,  for  a  few  months  later, 
at  the  end  of  August,  1814,  she  landed  at  Elba,  ac- 
companied by  her  son,  her  sister  and  her  brother, 
Colonel  Laczinski,  and  spent  a  day  with  the  Emper- 
or at  the  hermitage  of  Marciana.  From  the  mo- 
ment she  learned  of  Napoleon's  return  to  Paris  in 
1815  she  was  among  the  most  devoted  and  assiduous 
of  the  women  who  visited  the  Elyseo  and  at  Mal- 
maison,  faithful  to  the  Emperor  through  his  fall 
and  misfortunes. 

But  after  he  had  gone  to  St.  Helena  she  thought 


236  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

herself  free,  and  M.  Walewska  having  died  in  1814, 
she  married  at  Liege  in  1816,  General  Count 
d'Ornano,  who  had  been  obliged  to  take  refuge  there 
after  the  second  return  of  the  Bourbons.  General 
d'Ornano  had  been  one  of  the  bravest  officers  of  the 
Grand  Army,  and  Mme.  Walewska's  union  with  him 
was  brief  but  happy,  for  she  died  within  the  year, 
expiring  in  her  home  in  the  rue  de  la  Victoire  on  the 
15th  of  December,  1817. 

One  of  the  Emperor's  companions  at  St.  Helena 
tells  us,  that  the  news  of  Mme.  Walewska's  marriage 
affected  His  Majesty  keenly,  as  he  had  preserved  a 
warm  affection  for  her  and  could  not  reconcile  him- 
self to  the  thought  that  one  whom  he  had  loved 
should  care  for  another.  In  his  will  the  Emperor 
had  expressed  his  desire  that  Alexandre  "Walewska 
should  enter  the  French  army  ;  his  career  was  a 
brilliant  one,  and  as  soldier,  writer,  diplomat  and 
statesman  his  life  is  too  intimately  associated  with 
the  history  of  his  time  to  render  it  necessary  for  us 
to  dwell  upon  it  here. 


NAPOLEON,   LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  237 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE    DIVORCE. 

The  death  of  Napoleon-Charles  destroyed  Napo- 
leon's dream  of  creating  an  heredity  hy  adoption  ; 
the  birth  of  Leon  disabused  his  mind  of  all  doubts 
of  his  inability  to  create  a  direct  line,  and  love  for 
Mme.  Walewska  completed  the  work  by  weakening 
Josephine's  influence.  It  is  impossible  that  at  Tilsit 
the  Emperor  directly  negotiated  an  alliance  with  a 
Russian  grand-duchess,  but  certain  that  from  the 
moment  of  his  return  to  France  he  began  paving  the 
way  for  divorce  ;  his  ordinary  method  of  procedure 
was  to  carry  a  project  into  operation  as  soon  as  it 
was  conceived,  but  he  took  two  years  for  the  execu- 
tion of  this  one. 

Mentally  Napoleon  was  fully  alive  to  the  advan- 
tages which  would  accrue  to  him  from  a  divorce 
and  second  marriage,  but,  though  his  brain  was 
willing,  his  heart's  dictates  were  in  opposition  to 
his  political  sagacity,  and  it  was  this  war  within 
himself  which  kept  him  in  a  state  of  uncertainty 


238  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

from  1807  to  1809,  an  uncertainty  which  causes  his 
actions  to  appear  inexplicable  to  the  historian,  can- 
not be  accounted  for  by  political  reasons,  and  was 
due  solely  to  conscientious  scruples. 

Before  Napoleon  could  acquire  the  energy  neces- 
sary for  the  rupture  of  his  marital  relations  with 
the  woman  whom  he  had  once  passionately  loved, 
and  raised  to  share  the  throne  with  him,  who  was 
bound  to  him  by  ten  years  of  close  companionship, 
and  whom,  with  her  children,  he  had  preferred 
above  his  own  flesh  and  blood,  it  was  essential  that 
the  ties  which  bound  him  should  break  one  by  one, 
and  a  divorce  became  a  necessity. 

Feeling  that  he  was  about  to  do  her  a  great  wrong, 
Napoleon  attributed  to  Josephine  even  more  amiable 
qualities  than  she  possessed,  and  repeatedly  said  to 
his  advisers  :  "  She  will  not  be  able  to  bear  it,  it  will 
kill  her  !  "  and  possibly  he  was  superstitious  enough 
to  believe  that  his  fortunes  depended  upon  her  and 
her  star  ;  yet  neither  vain  superstition,  fear  of  the 
criticism  of  his  companions  in  arms  nor  of  public 
opinion,  caused  his  hesitation,  he  simply  paused  for 
a  time,  listening  to  the  dictates  of  his  heart. 

Weary  of  the  Emperor's  vacillations  some  of  those 
who  were  ardent  advocates  of  the  divorce,  such  as 
Fouche,  essayed  to  hasten  the  rupture  by  adroit 
insinuations  to  Josephine,  with  the  view  of  determin- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  239 

ing  her  to  take  the  initiative  and  voluntarily  sacri- 
fice herself.  Napoleon  understood  that  this  excess 
of  zeal  rose  from  the  projects  he  had  formed  and 
allowed  to  be  divined,  but  the  more  he  realized  his 
weakness  the  more  it  irritated  him,  and,  indignant 
that  one  of  his  ministers  should  fancy  he  could  coerce 
him,  that  this  police  spy  should  have  dared  to  probe 
into  his  domestic  life  and  show  his  ugly  face  in  the 
conjugal  chamber,  he  treated  Fouche  as  he  had 
never  treated  any  man  before,  and  Josephine, 
astutely  advised  by  Talleyrand,  who  for  some  reason 
or  another  wished  to  throw  an  obstacle  in  Fouche's 
path,  profited  by  her  husband's  momentary  indigna- 
tion and  boldly  accused  him  of  intending  to  repu- 
diate her,  Napoleon  shrinking  from  the  scene  which 
was  bound  to  follow  an  admission  of  his  intention, 
hesitated  and  was  reconquered. 

This  renewal  of  affection  for  his  wife  did  not 
render  him  more  faithful,  for  in  the  sentiment 
which  he  entertained  for  Josephine,  fidelity  had  no 
part ;  it  was  a  kindly  feeling,  combined  from 
memory,  pity  and  gratitude,  but  permitting  of  no 
illusions  regarding  the  youth  and  beauty  of  his  wife, 
and  when  he  found  himself  in  the  society  of  younger 
and  prettier  women  he  saw  no  reason  why  he  should 
not  enjoy  it  without  detriment  to  his  marital  rela- 
tions. 


240  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

During  the  sojourn  at  Paris  and  Fontainebleau, 
between  August  and  October  of  1807,  Mme.  Gazzani 
exercised  her  influence  over  Napoleon,  and  it  is  said 
that  at  Fontainebleau  he  also  fell  a  victim  to  the 
charms  of  Mme.  de  B.  *  *  *  *,  who  was  a  companion 
to  the  Princess  Pauline.  This  Mme.  de  B.  *  *  *  1 
whose  husband  was  distantly  related  to  the  Beau- 
harnais  and  owed  his  place  at  court  to  his  kinship 
with  them,  was  one  of  the  prettiest  of  women  ;  she 
was  very  tall,  and  some  claim  that  her  head  and 
features  were  too  small  for  her  figure,  but  she 
was  generally  considered  a  remarkably  handsome 
woman ;  she  was  extremely  clever,  poor,  and  morally 
unprejudiced.  The  Emperor  saw  her  at  first  at  a 
hunting-breakfast  and  signified  his  admiration  for 
her,  going  so  far,  it  is  said,  as  to  write  to  her.  Her 
apartment  was  on  the  first  floor  of  the  chateau,  and 
gave  into  the  garden  of  Diana,  so  it  was  conveniently 
situated  for  nocturnal  visitors,  and  His  Majesty  was 
always  welcome.  Mme.  de  B.  ****  was  well  con- 
tent with  her  position,  and  the  husband,  who  was 
aged  and  little  troubled  by  scruples,  rubbed  his 
hands  over  it.  "My  wife,"  he  said  one  day,  in  a 
drawing-room,  "is  a  woman  of  wonderful  re- 
sources ;  we  are  not  rich,  yet,  thanks  to  her  clever- 
ness, we  appear  to  be  ;  she  is  a  perfect  treasure." 
She  worked  so  well  that  she  made  him  a  chamber- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND.  241 

lain  to  one  of  the  Emperor's  imperial  brothers  and  a 
baron  of  the  Empire.  This  liaison,  however,  was 
conducted  with  such  secrecy  that  some  have  doubted 
if  it  really  existed,  and  as  it  was  not  continued  after 
the  Emperor  left  Fontainebleau,  the  complaisant 
husband's  pleasure  abated  and  he  had  some  un- 
pleasant experiences,  for  Mme.  de  B.  *  *  *  *  quarrel- 
ing with  the  princess  because  of  a  brilliant  young 
officer,  was  dismissed  from  the  imperial  household 
and  obliged  to  retire  to  her  country-seat,  while  the 
officer  was  sent  to  Spain,  where  he  was  grievously 
wounded  ;  on  his  return,  Mme.  de  B.  *  *  *  *  secured 
a  divorce  and  they  were  married. 

Although  Bonaparte  had  allowed  Josephine  to 
reassume  her  sway  over  him  he  was  still  haunted 
by  the  thought  of  divorce,  the  wisdom  of  which  his 
counsellors  never  permitted  him  to  forget,  and  it 
was  with  this  step  in  view  that  he  went  to  Italy  in 
1807.  One  of  Josephine's  greatest  disquietudes  in 
connection  with  the  divorce  was  the  effect  it  would 
have  upon  her  son,  for  although  Napoleon  had  es- 
tablished Eugene  in  Italy  as  viceroy  in  1805,  and 
had  married  him,  in  1806,  to  the  Princess  Augusta, 
giving  him  the  title  of  "Son  of  France,"  his 
promises  had  not  been  sanctioned  by  legislative  act  ; 
he  wished,  therefore,  to  reassure  both  his  wife  and 

the  House  of  Bavaria,  and  also  to  inform  himself 
16 


242  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND   HUSBAND. 

regarding  a  union  which  had  been  proposed  to  him, 
namely,  a  marriage  with  the  Princess  Charlotte  of 
Bavaria,  and  it  was  doubtless  with  this  alliance  in 
view  that  he  arranged  a  meeting  at  Milan  with  the 
Bavarian  king,  queen  and  princess.  The  young  girl, 
however,  proved  less  prepossessing  than  he  had  an- 
ticipated, and  discarding  the  idea  of  that  alliance 
he  left  the  princess  to  her  strange  destiny,  and  con- 
sidered the  advisability  of  a  family  alliance. 

Although  Lucien  Bonaparte's  first  wife,  Catherine 
Boyer,  was  a  woman  of  most  humble  origin,  the  un- 
educated daughter  of  an  innkeeper  at  Saint-Max- 
imin  de  Var,  Napoleon  had  loved  her  like  a  sister, 
and  her  young  daughter,  Lolotte,  having  reached  a 
marriageable  age  he  seriously  considered  the  advisa- 
bility of  making  her  his  wife.  There  was  an  es- 
trangement between  his  brother  Lucien  and  himself, 
and  the  Emperor,  who  considered  family  unity  es- 
sential, was  desirous  of  effecting  a  reconciliation, 
and  argued  that  this  step  might  cement  Lueien's 
affection  for  him  ;  he  reasoned  that  if  the  dissimi- 
larity between  Lolotte's  age  and  his  proved  too 
great  and  the  young  girl  showed  any  repugnance 
at  the  idea  of  becoming  his  wife,  or  if,  on  close  ac- 
quaintance with  her,  he  should  alter  his  intentions, 
it  would  be  easy  to  find  her  a  suitable  husband  from 
some  of  the  royal  houses  of  Europe.     He  thought 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  243 

that,  should  the  marriage  take  place,  the  succession 
which  he  would  establish  in  France  would  be  more 
purely  Bonaparte,  and  hoped  that  the  girl  who  had 
been  very  fond  of  him  as  a  little  child  would  find  it 
easy  to  renew  the  affection  of  her  youth.  Lolotte 
was  brought  to  Paris  and  placed  under  the  protection 
of  her  grandmother,  Madame  Mere,  but  she  did  not 
remain  long.  She  amused  her  father  with  her  letters 
about  the  doings  of  the  French  court,  seemingly  un- 
suspicious that  her  correspondence  was  watched, 
and  it  was  soon  clear  to  Napoleon  that  a  union  with 
his  niece  was  not  feasible,  whereupon  he  sent  her 
back  to  Italy.  Lolotte  Bonaparte  never  wore  a  crown, 
but  in  1815,  she  married  the  Prince  Gabrielli,  and 
lived  until  1865. 

The  Italian  journey,  then,  was  unproductive  as 
far  as  Napoleon's  matrimonial  projects  were  con- 
cerned, but  Fouche  continued  to  agitate  and  dissem- 
inate the  idea  of  divorce,  thus  exposing  himself  to 
wrathful  letters  from  the  Emperor,  which  did  not, 
however,  cause  him  to  cease  intriguing ;  his  ordi- 
narily clear  perception  seemed  obscured,  his  usual 
sagacity  at  fault,  for  he  failed  to  see  that  this  was 
not  the  moment  to  urge  his  plans.  The  perils  of 
Eylau,  and  the  conspiracy  which  was  hatched  dur- 
ing his  absence  had  not  made  sufficient  impression 
upon  the  Emperor  for  him  to  deem  it  essential  to 


244      NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

leave  a  living  representative  in  Paris  when  war 
called  him  away,  and  in  order  to  decide  him  to  repu- 
diate Josephine  and  wed  another  an  extraordinarily 
desirable  alliance  must  be  proposed  :  such  a  one 
was  not  at  hand,  the  idea  of  a  Russian  alliance 
having  long  been  abandoned,  and  Austria  having  no 
marriageable  daughter  to  offer. 

Almost  immediately  following  Napoleon's  return 
from  Italy,  Mme.  Walewska  arrived  in  Paris  and 
Napoleon's  heart  was  completely  filled  with  her, 
while  his  mind  was  occupied  with  affairs  of  state  ; 
the  Spanish  question  perplexed  him  greatly,  and 
claiming  that  that  must  be  settled  before  he  could 
reopen  with  Alexander  the  conference  begun  at 
Tilsit,  he  gave  little  thought  to  the  question  of  di- 
vorce. Talleyrand,  however,  began  to  urge  the  step, 
and  to  insist  that  the  Emperor  should  at  least  come 
to  some  decision  upon  the  subject.  Under  the  press- 
ure brought  to  bear  upon  him  Napoleon  became  so 
excited  and  nervous  that  a  serious  illness  seemed 
inevitable  ;  he  had  frequent  attacks  of  excruciating 
stomach  trouble,  and  when  ill  would  draw  his  wife 
down  beside  him  on  the  bed  and  weeping  sob  out 
that  he  could  not  leave  her. 

It  seemed  as  if  Josephine  possessed  some  talisman 
by  which  she  held  her  husband's  affection,  and  al- 
though he  sometimes  said  that  she  was  old  and  ugly, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  245 

during  their  sojourn  at  Marrac  his  conduct  towards 
her  was  like  that  of  a  youthful  lover.  In  those  days 
he  apparently  forgot  that  a  divorce  had  ever  been 
talked  of  ;  they  amused  themselves  like  a  couple  of 
children  let  loose  from  school ;  frequently,  in  the 
presence  of  the  guard  of  light  cavalry  that  escorted 
them,  he  chased  Josephine  across  the  beach  and 
pushed  her  into  the  water,  laughing  like  a  boy,  and 
when  the  Empress,  in  her  haste,  lost  her  shoes,  he 
threw  them  out  to  sea  and  forced  her  to  drive  home 
in  her  stockings,  that  he  might  the  better  see  and 
feel  her  feet,  which  he  greatly  admired.  At  this 
period  he  was  more  alive  to  Josephine's  worth  than 
ever  before,  indeed  she  never  appeared  to  better  ad- 
vantage than  upon  this  journey  to  Bayonne ;  she 
showed  herself  intelligent,  adroit  and  full  of  tact 
in  the  strange  interview  they  were  obliged  to  hold 
with  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  and  later  during  the 
triumphal  march  across  the  south  and  west  prov- 
inces, when  the  temperature  was  so  high  that  in 
order  to  be  at  all  comfortable  they  were  obliged  to 
travel  by  night,  when  at  each  halting  place  they 
were  feted  and  entertained  in  exactly  the  same  dull 
manner,  when  Napoleon  was  bored  in  the  extreme 
by  the  ovations,  Josephine,  in  spite  of  fatigue  and 
illness,  was  always  punctual  and  ready  with  a 
gracious  smile  and  fitting  word  for  all.     It  was 


246  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

wonderful  how  she  managed  to  appear  interested  in 
everything,  in  household  affairs  and  children,  in  all 
which  could  best  please  the  women  ;  how  she  man- 
aged to  temper  Napoleon's  dominant  power  by  her 
gracious  smile  and  caressing  manner  and  to  win 
love  where  he  won  admiration.  She  had  wonderful 
tact  in  giving  a  present,  and  a  way  of  taking  a  jewel 
from  her  own  person  and  offering  it  to  a  matron  or 
maid  which  was  simply  captivating,  and  understood 
how  to  make  the  presentation  to  an  official  of  an 
obligatory  present  appear  like  a  token  of  personal 
esteem. 

Although  for  four  months  constantly  under  the 
charm  of  Josephine's  presence,  the  desire  for  divorce 
again  took  hold  of  Napoleon  ;  doubtless  it  was  the 
incentive  for  the  journey  of  Erfurt,  to  which  place 
he  was  accompanied  by  Talleyrand,  whose  mission  it 
was  to  insinuate  to  the  Emperor  Alexander  that 
Napoleon  was  ready  to  share  his  throne  with  one  of 
the  grand  duchesses  ;  but  Talleyrand,  instead  of 
serving  his  royal  master,  unscrupulously  betrayed 
him  ;  it  was  he  who  furnished  the  Russian  Emperor 
with  a  plan  for  eluding  Napoleon's  proposal,  sug- 
gested the  basis  for  a  new  coalition  against  France, 
and  paved  the  way  for  the  war  of  1809. 

From  Erfurt,  Napoleon  was  obliged  to  return  at 
once  to  Paris  and  the  Spanish  frontier.     He  relied 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  247 

upon  Alexander's  good  faith,  and  fancied  that  when 
he  had  quelled  the  Spanish  mutiny,  nothing  would 
be  easier  to  arrange  than  the  proposed  Russian 
alliance.  However,  it  was  not  a  mutiny  which 
he  had  to  subdue  in  Spain  but  an  insurrec- 
tion, and,  instead  of  taking  two  months  to  put  it 
down,  as  he  had  anticipated,  he  was  detained  three 
months,  and  finally  achieved  but  a  barren  victory. 
Then  came  news  from  Paris  of  plots  in  his  own 
family,  who  were  figuring  upon  his  death,  that 
Austria  was  again  in  arms,  that  the  archdukes  were 
instigating  revolt  in  Germany,  and  the  sacred  war 
kept  alive  by  secret  societies.  Leaving  Benavente, 
he  spurred  to  Paris  with  incredible  rapidity,  and  in 
three  months  he  unmasked  traitors,  put  his  affairs 
in  order,  organized  an  army,  and  pushed  on  to  the 
Danube,  Austria  having  attacked  and  Archduke 
Charles  invaded  the  territory  of  the  confederation  ; 
but  when  at  Schoenbrunn,  after  seventeen  months  of 
indefatigable  action,  he  had  time  for  reflection,  the 
urgent  necessity  for  divorce  was  made  apparent  ; 
he  not  only  realized  clearly  the  obligation  of  assur- 
ing an  heredity,  but  the  necessity  of  having  a  repre- 
sentative in  Paris  during  his  absence,  one  around 
whom  his  friends  would  rally  in  the  case  of  an 
English  invasion  or  an  uprising  of  the  royalists. 
Josephine  was  no  longer  at  hand  to  confuse  and 


248  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

trouble  him  by  appeals  to  his  conscience,  and  the 
memory  of  the  years  they  had  passed  together,  to 
startle  him  by  suggesting  that,  with  the  sundering 
of  their  lives,  the  star  of  his  destiny  would  begin  to 
wane  ;  another  woman,  as  agreeable,  younger,  and 
more  beautiful,  next  whose  heart  lay  a  child  of  his, 
was  at  his  side,  and  so  the  question,  which  for  two 
long  years  had  vexed  his  spirit  and  wrung  his  heart, 
was  finally  settled.  So  long  as  Napoleon  doubted  if 
he  could  have  children  he  had  schemed,  planned  and 
invented  every  imaginable  combination  for  the 
foundation  of  an  heredity,  but  now  that  he  knew 
that  he  could  found  a  line  of  kings,  that  his  descend- 
ants might  sit  upon  the  throne  of  France,  it  was 
plain  to  him  that  a  second  marriage  was  the  only 
practical  step,  that  a  direct  heir  alone  could  ensure 
the  stability  of  the  Empire. 

In  order  to  spare  both  Josephine  and  himself,  and 
avoid  further  painful  scenes,  he  wrote  from  Vienna 
ordering  that  the  communicating  doors  between  his 
apartments  and  the  Empress's  at  Fontainebleau 
be  walled  up,  and  when  Josephine  joined  him  at  the 
chateau,  he  refused  to  grant  her  a  private  interview 
and  remained  closeted  with  his  ministers  ;  from  that 
time,  he  so  arranged  that  they  were  never  alone  to- 
gether, and  thus  avoided  any  explanations  or  private 
conversation  regarding  his   intentions.      Napoleon 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       249 

essayed  to  make  Hortense  announce  his  decision  to 
her  mother,  and,  when  she  refused,  summoned  Eu- 
gene from  Italy  for  the  purpose  ;  but  when  he  knew 
his  stepson  to  be  on  the  way,  he  mustered  up  his 
courage  and  provoked  the  supreme  conversation 
wherein  he  must  declare  to  his  wife  his  irrevocable 
determination  to  divorce  her. 

So  at  last  fell  the  blow  which  Josephine  had  been 
dreading  for  years,  for  the  avoidance  of  which  she 
had  deployed  all  her  charms,  the  fear  of  which  had 
poisoned  her  life  ;  she  knew  that  further  effort  was 
futile,  and  although  she  wept  and  fainted  when  the 
Emperor  finally  announced  his  decision,  it  was  rather 
with  the  view  of  making  the  best  of  the  situation 
for  herself  and  children  than  from  excess  of  feeling  ; 
she  wished  her  son's  position  firmly  established,  her 
own  debts  paid,  and  an  ample  income  settled  upon 
her ;  she  desired  to  preserve  the  rank  and  prerog- 
atives of  an  Empress,  and  above  all  that  she  should 
not  be  forced  to  leave  Paris.  Napoleon  granted  all 
that  she  asked,  the  Elysee  was  given  her  as  a  town 
residence,  the  domain  of  Malmaison  for  a  country 
seat,  and  the  chateau  of  Navarre  as  a  hunting-lodge  ; 
and  a  yearly  income  of  three  millions,  the  title,  the  es- 
cort, and  the  customary  retinue  of  a  reigning  Em- 
press were  assured  her  ;  thus  he  prepared  for  his 
divorced  wife  a  place  in  the  state  which  was  unpar- 


250  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

alleled  in  history,  unless  a  like  example  could  be 
found  among  the  annals  of  Eome  and  Byzantium. 

But  Napoleon  gave  his  divorced  wife  more  than 
money,  palaces  and  titles,  he  gave  her  his  sympathy 
and  his  tears.  He  sent  almost  hourly  for  news  of 
her,  desiring  to  know  how  she  passed  her  time  away 
from  him,  and  like  the  most  faithful  and  tender  of 
lovers,  wrote  her  letter  after  letter,  and  insisted  that 
all  who  surrounded  her  should  visit  him  that  he 
might  glean  from  them  every  item  of  interest  re- 
garding the  daily  life  of  the  woman  he  had  repu- 
diated ;  there  was  no  attention,  kindness,  or  favor 
that  he  did  not  lavish  upon  her,  so  conscious  was  he 
of  the  wrong  he  had  done  ;  what  he  wished  was  that 
she  should  accept  the  inevitable  with  fortitude,  and, 
making  the  best  of  her  new  situation,  relieve  him  of 
the  pain  of  knowing  her  unhappy  through  his  will. 

Nevertheless,  when  he  went  to  Malmaison  to  see 
and  console  Josephine  he  never  embraced  her  or 
entered  her  private  apartments,  but  so  arranged 
that  his  visits  should  have  an  air  of  formality,  for 
he  wished  that  both  she  and  the  world  should  know 
that  all  was  ended.  This  conduct  bears  witness  to 
his  respect  for  Josephine,  showing  that  he  would  not 
permit  any  one  to  think  that  the  wife  of  yesterday 
had  become  the  mistress  of  to-day  ;  perhaps,  too,  he 
doubted  of  his  ability  to  maintain  his  distant  de- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  251 

meanor  save  when  supported  by  witnesses,  and  his 
conduct  shows  how  strong,  powerful  and  tender 
was  his  affection  for  this  woman  ;  an  affection 
which  had  outlived  youth  and  beauty,  and,  in  spite 
of  all  strains,  remained  to  the  last  the  great  love 
of  his  life. 


252  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK  AND  HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  XVn. 

MARIE-LOUISE. 

Up  to  this  period  all  the  women  with  whom  Na- 
poleon had  been  intimately  connected  had  been  con- 
sidered by  him  as  his  inferiors,  for,  surrounded  by 
women  of  the  noblest  blood  of  France,  Montmoren- 
cies,  Mortemarts  and  Lavals,  he  had  learned  to  es- 
timate the  social  worth  of  the  Beauharnais  family 
correctly,  and  the  influence  which  Josephine  had 
exercised  over  him  through  her  supposed  prestige 
had  long  since  vanished.  None  of  his  mistresses 
had  been  sufficiently  high-born  to  flatter  his  vanity 
by  her  rank  and  worldly  position  ;  indeed,  he  does 
not  seem  to  have  attempted  conquests  of  that  kind, 
or,  if  he  did,  must  have  been  early  discouraged  ; 
moreover,  in  order  to  satisfy  his  egotism  and  ambi- 
tion something  more  than  a  marriage  with  a  noble 
family  of  France  was  necessary.  Such  an  alliance 
was  made  possible  by  the  Emperor  of  Austria's  prof- 
fer of  the  hand  of  his  eldest  daughter  Marie-Louise  ; 
this  alliance  Napoleon  believed  would  assist  him  to 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      253 

I  climb  the  last  step  towards  equality  with  his  prede- 
I  cessors  upon  the  French  throne,  and  the  Napoleonic 
system  which  he  had  endeavored  to  establish  and  to 
strengthen  by  intermarriages  between  the  Bona- 
partes  and  the  various  reigning  families  of  Europe, 
would,  by  his  marriage,  become  amalgamated  with 
the  house  of  Austria,  even  as  the  Bourbons  had  been 
before  him,  his  dynasty  would  lose  its  improvised 
air,  and  on  assuming  the  quartering  of  the  house  of 
Austria  gain  the  relationships  which  seemed  to  him 
to  constitute  the  only  strong  and  durable  political 
tie. 

In  this  alliance  Napoleon's  ambition  found  satis- 
faction, but  how  could  his  dominant  spirit  accommo- 
date itself  to  a  wife  who  had  from  birth  the  con- 
sciousness of  her  rank  and  worth,  and  the  belief  in 
her  own  infallibility  common  to  those  born  in  the 
purple.  By  a  strange  hazard  the  young  girl  who 
was  offered  to  him  had  been  so  educated  as  to  have 
no  will  save  that  of  her  father,  to  realize  that  her 
interests  were  subordinate  to  those  of  her  nation, 
that  she  was  destined  to  play  a  role  in  some  political 
combination,  and  that  she  must  accept  without  a 
murmur  the  marriage  which  the  political  interests 
of  her  country  imposed  upon  her  ;  it  was  with  this 
object  in  view  that  Marie-Louise's  character  had 
been  moulded  from  earliest  infancy.     She  had  been 


254  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

taught  all  languages,  German,  English,  French, 
Italian,  Spanish,  Turkish,  Bohemian  and  even  Latin, 
for  it  was  impossible  to  foresee  where  her  destiny- 
would  lead  her ;  moreover,  it  was  argued,  that  the 
more  extended  her  vocabulary,  the  greater  the 
number  of  words  at  her  command  for  the  expres- 
sion of  an  idea,  the  less  ideas  she  was  likely  to  have. 
Her  talents  for  music  and  drawing  had  been  en- 
couraged and  cultivated  as  those  accomplishments 
provided  an  innocent  means  of  distraction  for  a 
princess  wherever  she  might  find  herself  ;  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Church  had  been  given  her  literally,  and 
minute  attention  to  all  its  forms  inculcated,  but  all 
questions  of  dogma  were  avoided,  for  it  was  possible 
that  fate  would  give  the  Austrian  princess  a  heretic 
for  a  husband.  Her  education  included  a  system  of 
morals  which  only  the  casuists  of  Spain  could  have 
advised  ;  the  archduchess  was  kept  in  ignorance 
regarding  the  difference  in  sex,  the  barnyard  was 
peopled  only  by  hens,  she  had  no  little  dogs,  only 
bitches,  her  riding  horse  was  a  mare,  her  books 
were  pitilessly  expurged,  pages,  lines,  even  words 
being  cut  out,  without  its  occurring  to  the  censor 
that  the  gulfs  thus  created  would  give  the  arch- 
duchess food  for  thought.  The  princess  was  con- 
tinually under  the  surveillance  of  a  court  lady,  who 
directed  the  management  of  her  apartments,  was 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  255 

present  at  her  lessons,  invented  her  games,  and 
watched  the  servants  and  teachers  ;  this  lady  never 
left  her  pupil,  either  by  night  or  day,  and,  as  politics 
played  an  important  part  in  the  princess's  destiny, 
the  incumbent  of  this  position  changed  with  each 
new  ministry,  and  Marie-Louise  had  five  governesses 
in  eighteen  years  ;  her  education,  however,  was  regu- 
lated by  such  rigid  laws  that,  despite  all  changes  in 
her  suite,  she  remained  the  same. 

Marie-Louise's  amusements  were  such  as  are  com- 
mon to  a  conventual  life  ;  she  had  flowers  to  culti- 
vate, birds  to  take  care  of,  and  sometimes  lunched 
under  the  trees  with  her  governess's  daughter  ;  her 
holidays  were  spent  in  the  intimacy  of  the  family  in 
pleasant  but  bourgeois  fashion ;  she  never  partici- 
pated in  the  gaieties  of  the  court,  and  had  made  but 
one  or  two  short  journeys  in  order  that  she  might 
have  change  of  air.  The  event  which  had  made  the 
greatest  impression  upon  her,  and  which  had  given 
her  the  most  distraction,  were  her  flights  before  the 
French  invasions,  when  discipline  had  been  relaxed 
and  tasks  laid  aside  ;  thus  it  was  not  a  woman  who 
was  offered  to  Napoleon  but  a  child,  accustomed  to 
live  under  such  strict  rules  that  any  life  would  seem 
sweet  by  comparison,  and  for  whom  the  simplest 
pleasures  would  possess  a  charm. 

Marie-Louise's  education  was  identical  with  that 


256  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

given  to  the  daughters  of  Marie-Therese  and  the  re- 
sult of  this  method,  as  exemplified  by  Marie- Antoi- 
nette at  Versailles,  Marie-Caroline  at  Naples  and 
Marie- Amelie  at  Parma,  was  not  desirable — and  it 
was  to  be  dreaded  lest  the  nature  of  the  young  Aus- 
trian princess  which  had  been  so  repressed  would 
expand  in  the  same  way  as  her  aunt's  ;  Napoleon, 
however,  reasoned  that  husbands  are  responsible  for 
their  wives'  conduct,  and  laid  his  plans  accordingly. 
The  school-girl  who  was  to  pass  into  his  keeping 
should  simply  leave  the  convents  of  Schoenbrunn 
and  Laxenburg  for  that  of  the  Tuileries  and  Saint- 
Cloud,  she  should  live  under  the  same  inflexible 
rules,  the  same  rigorous  surveillance,  she  should 
have  no  freedom  in  the  choice  of  friendships  and 
read  no  book  which  had  not  been  previously  scanned  ; 
no  masculine  visitors  should  be  permitted,  and  her 
governess  should  be  replaced  by  a  lady  of  honor  and 
four  ladies-in-waiting  who  should  be  perpetually  on 
guard  ;  the  only  difference  in  her  life  should  be  the 
presence  of  a  husband. 

Thus  since  the  husband  was  obliged  to  teach  his 
wife  all  that  her  parents  had  taken  pains  to  conceal 
from  her,  he  resolved  to  supplement  the  enlighten- 
ment by  great  precautions,  and  determined  that  no 
man,  however  high  or  low  his  position  upon  the 
social  ladder,  should  remain  for  one  instant   alone 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEB  AND  HUSBAND.  257 

with  the  Empress.  He  re-established  the  etiquette 
of  Louis  XIV.  's  time,  the  rigidity  of  which  had  been 
relaxed  through  the  indifference  of  Louis  XV.  and 
the  feebleness  of  Louis  XVI.  ;  but  where  royalty 
veiled  its  distrust  under  the  disguise  of  traditional 
honors,  employing  the  highest  ladies  in  the  land  to 
watch  the  queen  under  the  pretext  of  keeping  her 
company,  Napoleon  brought  into  play  undisguised 
military  discipline  ;  he  was  not  actuated  by  jealousy, 
but  simply  by  motives  of  prudence  and  precaution  ; 
he  had  once  said  at  a  state's  council  :  "  Adultery  is 
the  affair  of  a  moment,"  and  he  was  convinced, 
perhaps  by  experience,  that  a  Ute-a-tete  between  a 
man  and  a  woman  easily  became  criminal.  With 
such  a  distrust  of  woman  Napoleon  would  doubtless 
have  found  the  Oriental  system  quite  to  his  taste, 
but  as  it  was  not  customary  among  Europeans  to 
seclude  their  wives  in  a  harem  he  was  obliged  to  re- 
place eunuchs  by  ladies-in-waiting,  and  iron  bars  by 
etiquette,  but,  save  for  the  name,  the  prison  was 
the  same.  The  imprisonment  accepted,  he  in- 
tended to  give  to  his  wife  every  material  pleasure 
which  she  could  desire  ;  but  the  pleasures  which  he 
offered  her  were  almost  identical  with  those  which 
a  Sultan  gives  to  his  favorite  odalisque. 

While  at  Vienna  Marie-Louise  ignored  the  pleas- 
ure of  elegant  dresses,  exquisite  laces,  rare  shawls 


258  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

and  dainty  linen ;  in  Paris,  provided  that  no  mer- 
chant approached  her  and  she  made  her  selections 
through  the  medium  of  a  lady  of  the  wardrobe, 
she  should  have  every  beautiful  thing  which  French 
industry  could  produce,  and  Napoleon  gave  her  a 
foretaste  of  the  luxuries  which  were  to  be  hers  in 
the  corbeille  which  he  sent  her,  of  which  he  inspected 
each  article  and  had  it  packed  under  his  super- 
vision. j«The  corbeille  included  twelve  dozen  chemise 
of  the'miest  batiste,  trimmed  with  embroidery  and 
Valenciennes,  twenty-four-  dozen  handkerchiefs, 
twenty-four  night-dresses,  thirty-six  skirts,  and 
twenty- four  night-caps,  at  a  cost  of  fifty-one 
thousand,  one  hundred  and  fifty -six  francs. 

In  addition  the  corbeille  contained  eighty-one 
thousand,  one  hundred  and  ninety-nine  francs'  worth 
of  laces,  exclusive  of  a  point-d'Alen^on  shawl, 
which  was  valued  at  three  thousand  two  hundred 
francs ;  sixty -four  dresses  from  Leroy  costing  one 
hundred  and  twenty -six  thousand,  nine  hundred 
and  seventy-six  francs  ;  seventeen  cashmere  shawls 
valued  at  thirty-nine  thousand,  eight  hundred  and 
sixty  francs  ;  twelve  dozen  stockings,  ranging  in 
price  from  eighteen  to  seventy-two  francs  a  pair, 
and  sixty  pairs  of  shoes  and  slippers  of  all  colors  and 
fabrics,  which  had  been  made  according  to  measures 
sent  from  Vienna,  and  were  so  small  that  Napoleon, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.  259 

as  he  examined  them,  remarked  that  it  was  a  good 
sign.  Everything  that  Paris  could  produce  that 
was  beautiful  and  rare  was  presented  to  her,  and 
yearly  she  might  have  almost  as  much.  As  for  her 
toilet  alone,  she  was  to  have  an  allowance  of  thirty 
thousand  francs  a  month. 

As  a  girl,  Marie-Louise  had  owned  but  one  or  two 
jewels,  whose  value  was  so  insignificant  that  the 
wife  of  a  Paris  shopkeeper  would  have  disdained 
them  ;  a  couple  of  hair  bracelets,  a  necklace  of  seed 
pearls  and  another  of  green  beads  had  comprised  her 
ornaments ;  as  Empress  she  was  to  have  diamonds 
of  enormous  value  ;  the  thirteen  stones  which  sur- 
rounded the  portrait  which  the  Emperor  sent  her 
alone  cost  six  hundred  thousand  francs,  a  diamond 
necklace  costing  nine  hundred  thousand  francs,  and 
a  pair  of  ear-rings  costing  four  hundred  thousand 
francs,  and  a  still  finer  parure  composed  of  a  diadem, 
comb,  ear-rings,  necklace  and  belt  contained  two 
thousand,  two  hundred  and  fifty-seven  large  stones 
and  three  hundred  and  six  rose  diamonds.  She  was 
to  have  a  parure  of  emeralds  and  diamonds  valued 
at  two  hundred  and  eighty-nine  thousand,  eight 
hundred  and  sixty-five  francs ;  one  of  opal  and 
diamonds  costing  two  hundred  and  seventy-five 
thousand,  nine  hundred  and  fifty-three  francs  ;  one 
of  ruby  and  diamonds  and  another  of  turquoise  and 


260  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

diamonds,  all  of  immense  value,  without  counting 
the  diamond  ornaments  furnished  by  the  crown  and 
appraised  at  three  million,  three  hundred  and  twenty  - 
five  thousand,  seven  hundred  and  twenty-four 
francs. 

The  apartments  which  she  had  inhabited  in  Aus- 
tria had  been  furnished  in  the  simplest  manner,  in 
France  magnificent  rooms  which  had  been  re-deco- 
rated and  furnished  under  the  Emperor's  personal 
supervision  awaited  her  coming,  and  in  order  to 
spare  her  any  feeling  of  strangeness  the  Emperor 
ordered  that  all  toilet  articles  and  small  pieces  of 
furniture  likely  to  be  in  daily  use  should  be  dupli- 
cated ;  thus,  in  whatever  palace  she  went  to  reside, 
the  articles  to  which  she  was  accustomed  should  be 
at  hand.  When  the  work  of  the  furnishing  of  the 
apartments  was  complete  the  Emperor  was  so  proud 
of  his  success  as  a  decorator  that  he  invited  all  his 
guests  to  view  them,  and  at  the  Tuileries  he  himself 
conducted  the  king  and  queen  of  Bavaria  to  inspect 
the  rooms,  taking  them  by  the  way  of  a  dark  and 
narrow  staircase  which  led  from  his  own  dressing- 
room  to  the  Empress's  bed-chamber ;  the  staircase 
was  so  narrow  that  the  king,  who  was  extremely 
corpulent,  was  obliged  to  descend  sideways,  and 
when  they  arrived  at  the  foot,  the  door  leading  into 
the  apartment  destined  for  the  Empress  was  found 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  261 

to  be  locked  and  they  were  obliged  to  turn  about  in 
the  dark  and  narrow  space  and  remount  the  stair- 
case— a  movement  which  was  executed  with  great 
difficulty  because  of  his  Bavarian  Majesty's  great 
size.  At  Compiegne  it  was  the  Emperor  also  who 
did  the  honors  of  the  Empress's  bathroom  to  the 
Queen  of  Westphalia,  displaying  to  her  the  marble 
bath  and  furniture  and  hangings  of  India  stuffs 
which  had  cost  four  hundred  thousand  francs. 

For  the  good  of  her  stomach  Marie-Louise's 
governesses  had  forbidden  all  rich  food,  but  the 
Emperor,  foreseeing  that,  like  most  Viennese,  she 
would  have  a  taste  for  goodies,  took  upon  himself 
the  ordering  of  her  table,  multiplying  the  deserts 
with  cakes  and  ices  and  bon-bons. 

Marie-Louise  had  a  generous  nature,  but  up  to  the 
time  of  her  marriage  had  had  nothing  to  give  save 
such  samples  of  her  own  handicraft  as  she  had  been 
taught  to  make  ;  as  Empress  she  was  enabled  to 
shower  presents  upon  her  family,  Napoleon  setting 
her  an  example  by  sending  handsome  presents  to 
her  people  even  before  she  arrived  in  France.  It 
was  not  possible  to  assert  that  she  had  a  taste  for 
the  theatre,  as  she  had  never  seen  a  play,  but  Napo- 
leon believed  that  she  would  not  be  of  her  country 
and  her  time  if  she  had  not,  and  planned  for  her 
amusement  in  that  way,  both  when  she  accompanied 


262  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

him  to  the  theatre  or  preferred  to  have  the  actors 
play  in  the  palace  ;  in  short  it  was  his  intention  that 
she  should  have  everything  which  would  distract 
and  amuse  her  so  long  as  it  was  in  accordance  with 
the  secluded  life  he  had  planned.  It  was  not  his  in- 
tention that  she  should  leave  her  apartments  save 
for  great  civil  and  religious  ceremonies,  state  balls, 
the  theatre,  the  hunt,  and  such  journeys  as  might  be 
necessary,  and  upon  these  occasions  she  was  to  be 
surrounded  by  her  ladies  of  honor  and  officers,  and, 
arrayed  in  court  costume,  laden  with  jewels,  she 
was  to  remain  in  haughty  isolation,  to  be  wor- 
shipped by  all  classes  from  afar  like  an  idol. 

Thus  he  essayed  to  gild  the  bars  of  the  prison 
which  he  had  prepared  for  the  Austrian  princess, 
dreaming  to  keep  her  a  child,  and  imagining  that 
she  would  pass,  without  feeling  the  transition,  from 
captive  archduchess  to  captive  empress  ;  thus  he 
sought  to  assure  himself  of  her  fidelity  and  so  to  ar- 
range her  life  that  she  should  be,  like  Caesar's  wife, 
above  suspicion.  The  woman  whom  he  thus  planned 
to  seclude  had  in  his  eyes  a  mission  to  fulfil,  to  be 
the  mother  of  his  children  ;  she  was  the  mould  des- 
tined to  receive  and  develop  the  dynastic  germ,  and 
it  was  in  order  to  assure  the  legitimacy  of  his  de- 
scendants that  he  took  so  many  precautions  :  he  acted 
not  unwisely,  for  the  doctrine  of  monarchical  sue- 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  263 

cession  hinges  upon  the  unquestionable  legitimacy 
of  offspring. 

Napoleon  did  not  doubt  that  Marie-Louise- would 
become  a  mother,  having  informed  himself  minute- 
ly regarding  her  health  and  physical  being,  and 
knowing  her  family  to  be  prolific,  her  mother 
having  had  thirteen  children,  her  grandmother 
seventeen,  and  her  great  grandmother  twenty-six, 
and  he  was  impatient  for  her  arrival  that  he  might 
insure  the  future  of  his  race. 

Napoleon  had  received  Marie-Louise's  portrait, 
which  represented  a  young  woman  with  long,  blonde 
hair  parted  in  heavy  masses  and  brushed  back  on 
each  side  from  a  high  forehead,  eyes  of  china  blue, 
a  nose  slightly  indented  at  the  base,  thick  lips,  heavy 
chin,  white  but  rather  prominent  teeth  and  a  com- 
plexion marred  by  the  ravages  of  smallpox  ;  the 
shoulders  were  large  and  white,  the  bust  remark- 
ably full,  and  the  arms,  which  were  long  and  thin, 
terminated  in  small  and  pretty  hands,  while  her 
foot  was  charming.  He  had  been  told  that  she  was 
tall  for  a  woman,  and  neither  graceful  nor  supple, 
but  an  easy  carriage  Napoleon  thought  could  be 
acquired,  and  what  he  most  desired  was  that  her 
appearance  should  show  the  characteristics  of  her 
race. 

When  Lejeune,  General  Berthier's  aide-de-camp, 


264  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

arrived  at  Compiegne,  preceding  Marie-Louise  by 
several  days,  Napoleon  had  the  portrait  which  he 
had  received  from  Vienna  brought  into  the  room 
and  proceeded  to  question  the  young  officer  as  to 
the  likeness  ;  happily  Lejeune  was  an  artist  as  well 
as  a  soldier,  and  was  able  to  show  the  Emperor  a 
sketch  in  profile  which  he  had  himself  made  of  the 
archduchess.  "Ah,"  exclaimed  Napoleon,  "she 
has  the  real  Austrian  lip  ! "  and  going  to  the  table 
upon  which  lay  a  number  of  medals  with  the  heads 
of  various  Austrian  sovereigns  thereon,  he  compared 
the  various  profiles  and  recognized  with  pleasure 
that  his  future  Empress  was  a  true  Habsburg. 

From  the  moment  the  negotiations  were  concluded, 
that  he  knew  his  dream  about  to  be  fulfilled, 
Napoleon  burned  with  impatience  for  possession  ;  in 
vain  he  essayed  to  distract  his  thoughts  by  hunting, 
but  the  idea  haunted  him  ;  he  spoke  of  it  to  every 
one  and  he  wished  the  preparations  for  the 
reception  finished  before  they  had  begun.  On  its 
being  represented  to  him  that  it  would  be  difficult 
to  turn  the  grand  salon  of  the  Louvre  into  a 
chapel  because  of  the  immense  pictures  which  it  was 
difficult  to  dispose  of,  he  responded:  "Well,  then, 
burn  them  ! " 

He  was  preoccupied  with  the  impression  which  he 
would  make  and  he  ordered  from  Leger,  who  was 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       265 

Murat's  tailor,  a  court  costume  literally  covered 
with  embroidery,  but  on  trying  it  on  found  it  so 
uncomfortable  that  he  was  unable  to  wear  it.  He 
ordered  boots  from  a  new  shoemaker,  in  order  to 
have  liner  shoes  than  those  he  had  hitherto  worn 
and  took  dancing-lessons,  wishing  to  learn  to  waltz, 
but  he  only  succeeded  in  bringing  on  an  attack  of 
heart  trouble,  which  forced  him  to  abandon  the 
lessons.  As  Catherine  of  Westphalia  wrote  to  her 
father :  * '  Neither  you  nor  I  would  ever  have  im- 
agined Napoleon  capable  of  such  things." 

In  measure  as  the  cortege  from  Vienna  advanced 
his  impatience  increased.  At  last  he  could  wait  no 
longer.  Marie-Louise  slept  at  Vitry  on  the  26th  of 
March,  on  the  27th  she  was  due  at  Soisson,  and  it 
was  not  until  the  28th  that  the  Emperor  was  to  join 
her.  The  programme  of  the  ceremonial  was  printed, 
the  pavilion  where  the  meeting  was  to  take  place 
was  built  and  decorated,  the  troops  were  commanded 
and  the  repast  prepared,  nevertheless,  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  27th,  in  a  pouring  rain,  Napoleon  left 
Compiegne  in  company  with  Murat,  and  without  an 
escort  or  suite,  rode  to  Courcelles  where  he  awaited 
Marie-Louise's  coming  under  the  shelter  of  a  church 
porch.  At  last  the  coach  with  its  eight  horses 
appeared  and  stopped  for  relays,  Napoleon  advanced 
to  the  side  of  the  carriage,  the  groom  of  the  chambers 


266  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND    HUSBAND. 

announced  him,  his  sister  Caroline,  who  was  con- 
ducting the  bride,  presented  him  to  Marie-Louise, 
and  dripping  with  rain  he  entered  the  carriage, 
which  drove  rapidly  off.  They  rushed  past  villages 
where  the  mayors,  address  in  hand,  waited  to  receive 
them,  through  cities  en  fSte  and  at  last,  at  nine 
o'clock  in  the  evening,  without  having  broken  the" 
day's  fast,  they  arrived  at  Compiegne.  The  Emperor 
cut  short  the  addresses  of  welcome,  presentations 
and  compliments,  and,  taking  Marie-Louise  by  the 
hand,  conducted  her  to  his  private  apartment ;  there 
the  young  girl  had  reason  to  remember  the  lesson 
which  her  father  had  instilled — obedience  to  her 
husband  in  all  things. 

The  following  noon  the  Emperor  had  his  break- 
fast served  at  the  Empress's  bedside  by  one  of  her 
maids,  and  during  the  day  he  said  to  one  of  his 
generals:  "  My  friend,  marry  a  German,  they  are 
the  best  women  in  the  world,  good,  amiable,  innocent, 
and  fresh  as  a  rose."  Napoleon  appears  to  have 
disregarded  or  disdained  the  criticisms  which  would 
naturally  follow  upon  his  action  in  assuming  that 
the  marriage  by  proxy  was  all  that  was  necessary, 
and  his  consummation  of  it  before  the  subsequent 
ceremonials  had  taken  place,  and  justified  his  con- 
duct by  saying  :  "  Henry  IV.  did  the  same." 


NAPOLEOX,   LOVER   AND    HUSBAND.  2ti7 


MARIE-LOUISE. 

PART  II. 

Three  months  after  her  marriage  Marie-Louise 
said  to  Metternich  :  "I  am  not  afraid  of  Napoleon, 
but  I  begin  to  think  he  is  of  me. "  Thus  three  months 
had  sufficed  to  banish  the  terrible  fear  which  from 
Vienna  to  Compiegne  had  caused  her  such  mortal 
terror  that  it  had  affected  her  physical  well-being. 
But  how  was  it  possible  that  Napoleon  should  have 
become  timid  in  the  presence  of  this  girl  of  eighteen  ? 
In  taking  this  Austrian  princess  to  wife  he  realized 
the  dream  of  years,  and  from  a  purely  physical  de- 
sire for  the  possession  of  the  high-born  girl  had  grown 
a  desire  to  be  the  object  of  her  affection,  as  well  as 
the  husband  assigned  her  by  the  political  interests 
of  her  country  ;  he  wished  to  know  that  he  possessed 
her  heart,  and  desired  that  she  should  proclaim  her 
happiness. 

One  morning  when  they  were  at  the  Tuileries  the 
Emperor  sent  for  Metternich  and  closeted  him  with 
the  Empress  ;  at  the  end  of  an  hour  he  rejoined  them 


268  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

and  said  to  the  ambassador  :  "  Well,  have  you  had 
a  good  talk,  has  the  Empress  laughed  or  cried,  had 
she  many  complaints  to  make  ? "  Then,  seeing  that 
the  ambassador  was  embarrassed,  he  added  :  "Oh, 
I  do  not  expect  you  to  give  me  a  detailed  account  of 
your  conversation  ;  it  is  private  matter  between  you 
and  the  Empress  ; "  nevertheless,  on  the  following 
day,  he  questioned  Metternich  minutely,  and  as 
the  latter  was  not  inclined  to  enlighten  him,  he 
exclaimed  :  "  The  Empress  has  no  complaints  to 
make,  and  I  hope  you  will  say  so  to  your  sovereign, 
as  he  will  rely  implicitly  upon  what  you  say."  In 
reality  it  was  rather  himself  than  the  Austrian  em- 
peror whom  he  sought  to  reassure  ;  he  wished  to  be- 
lieve that  his  wife  was  devoted  to  him,  that  she  was 
contented  with  the  life  he  forced  her  to  lead,  and 
hid  from  him  no  lingering  sentiment  of  distrust  and 
dislike.  Aspiring  to  domestic  peace  and  happiness, 
he  longed  for  the  assurance  of  Marie-Louise's  affec- 
tion and  the  realization  of  his  desires. 

From  childhood  the  Austrian  princess  had  shared 
the  universal  hatred  of  Bonaparte.  When  only  six 
years  old  her  mother  had  told  her  that  Monseigneur 
Bonaparte,  the  Corsican,  had  fled  from  Egypt,  desert- 
ing his  army,  and  had  become  a  Turk  ;  she  believed 
firmly  that  he  had  been  in  the  habit  of  beating  his 
ministers,  and  had  slain  two  of  his  generals  with  his 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  269 

own  hand,  and  the  year  preceding  her  marriage — 
the  year  which  had  seen  Vienna  bombarded,  and 
witnessed  the  battles  of  Eckmiihl,  Essling  and 
Wagram — she  had  considered  him  one  of  the  most 
despicable  of  beings.  After  Znaim  Marie-Louise 
wrote  to  a  friend  :  ' '  I  am  consumed  with  fury 
against  Napoleon,  yet  I  am  obliged  to  sit  at  table 
with  one  of  his  marshals  ; "  and  when  his  divorce 
was  announced,  and  the  question  of  a  second  mar- 
riage began  to  be  discussed  she  never  admitted  for 
a  moment  that  the  French  conqueror's  choice  might 
fall  upon  her.  "  My  father,"  she  said,  "  is  too  kind 
to  coerce  me  in  a  matter  of  such  importance."  She 
pitied  Napoleon's  possible  choice,  being  sure  that 
it  would  not  be  she  who  would  be  the  victim  of  polit- 
ical expediency  ;  and  when  the  project  of  her  mar- 
riage was  discussed,  she  wrote  to  a  friend  of  her 
childhood  :  "  Pray  for  me,  for,  while  I  am  ready  to 
sacrifice  my  personal  happiness  for  the  welfare  of 
my  country,  I  am  most  unhappy."  Though  in 
reality  the  Austrian  princesses  had  no  voice  in  the 
disposal  of  their  hands  and  no  opinion  save  that  of 
their  father,  for  form's  sake,  Marie-Louise's  consent 
to  the  marriage  was  asked,  and  she  resigned  herself 
to  the  inevitable,  while  mentally  regarding  her 
future  husband  as  an  ogre.  When  one  considers 
the  situation  her  feeling  was  not  unnatural  ;  fom 


270 

times  the  French  conqueror  had  devastated  her  coun- 
try, twice  he  had  entered  Vienna  as  a  victor ;  he  had 
forced  her  royal  father  to  go  to  his  camp,  suing  for 
peace  ;  every  sentiment  of  patriotism  and  filial  affec- 
tion, the  most  sacred  of  human  emotions,  the  most 
sensitive  chord  in  noble  pride  had  been  outraged 
by  him ;  yet,  strange  as  it  may  appear,  Marie- 
Louise  once  wed  her  repugnance  was  not  apparent. 
Whether  this  was  due  to  the  education  which  she 
had  received,  or  whether  her  natural  temperament 
was  awakened  and  she  enjoyed  the  good  things 
which  Napoleon  provided  for  her — luxuries  to  which 
she  was  unaccustomed, — and  found  his  person- 
ality not  displeasing,  or  whether  her  contentment 
was  feigned,  it  is  impossible  to  affirm  ;  but  it  is  prob- 
able that  the  first  supposition  is  correct,  and  Napo- 
leon did  all  in  his  power  to  prove  to  her  that  he  was, 
and  would  remain,  a  good  husband.  At  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Consulate  he  had  ceased  to  share  his 
chamber  with  Josephine,  pretending  that  his  work 
and  duties  rendered  it  necessary,  but  in  reality  to 
insure  his  own  freedom  ;  he  was  prepared,  however, 
if  Marie-Louise  exacted  it,  to  reassume  the  chain, 
for  he  said  :  "  It  is  a  woman's  rightful  appanage ; " 
but  their  temperaments  were  too  dissimilar  ;  while 
lie,  always  chilly,  wished  a  fire  kept  up  all  the  year 
round,  she,  accustomed  to  a  cold  climate  and  a 


NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND   HUSBAND.  271 

Spartan-like  existence  in  the  immense  and  glacial 
palaces  of  the  environs  of  Vienna,  could  not  stand 
heated  rooms.  Frequently,  with  the  uxoriousness 
of  a  young  husband,  he  urged  Marie-Louise  to  spend 
the  night  with  him,  but  she  always  responded  that 
he  kept  his  rooms  too  warm  ;  while  on  going  to  her 
apartments  he  would  find  the  temperature  too  low 
for  him  and  order  a  fire  lighted,  but  he  invariably 
deferred  to  Marie-Louise's  contrary  opinion  with 
the  remark  that  "Her  Majesty's  will  was  law," 
and,  after  shivering  for  a  short  period,  would  go 
away. 

This  difference  in  their  temperaments  and  indif- 
ference on  her  part  paved  the  way  for  infidelities, 
but  Napoleon  does  not  appear  to  have  thought  of 
such  a  thing,  or,  if  he  did,  he  hid  his  amours  care- 
fully and  they  were  but  passing.  In  1811  he  appears 
to  have  paid  some  attention  to  the  Princess  Aldo- 
brandini-Borghese,  nee  Mile,  de  Kochefaucauld,  to 
whom  he  had  given  a  dowry  of  eight  hundred 
thousand  francs  and  married  to  the  brother-in-law 
of  Pauline  Bonaparte,  and  whom  he  had  just  named 
lady-in-waiting  ;  but  it  is  probable  that  he  simply 
admired  the  manner  and  elegance  of  the  young 
woman,  who  is  said  to  have  been  charming.  There 
was  also  some  talk,  and  some  gossip  in  private  cor- 
respondence, regarding  the  Duchess  of  Montebello, 


272      NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

who  was  one  of  the  Empress's  ladies  of  honor,  but 
there  is  no  proof  of  a  liaison ;  such  adventures  as  he 
did  permit  himself  were  obscure  and  carefully  dis- 
simulated, creating  no  gossip,  simply  because  no  one 
knew  anything  about  them.  The  first  amour  which 
caused  any  gossip  had  its  birth  at  Caen  where  the 
Emperor  met  Mme.  Pellapra  of  the  Testa-Cubieres 
suit.  Napoleon  again  met  Mme.  Pellapra  at  Lyons 
on  his  return  from  Elba  in  1815,  and  then  pam- 
phleteers attacked  "  Mme.  Ventreplat "  to  their 
hearts'  content.  At  Saint-Cloud  there  was  a  little 
love-affair  with  a  certain  Lise  B  *  *  *  *  but  it  never 
reached  serious  proportions  ;  beyond  this  his  marital 
behavior  towards  Marie-Louise  was  exemplary. 

Bonaparte  imagined  that  the  young  Empress  felt 
aggrieved  at  his  visits  to  Josephine  at  Malmaison  and 
to  Mme.  Walewska  in  the  rue  de  la  Victoire,  al- 
though the  former  had  become  yearly  less  frequent 
in  proportion  as  Josephine's  conduct  became  more 
and  more  displeasing,  and  were  made  with  great 
privacy,  while  the  latter  were  so  secret  that  few 
were  cognizant  of  them.  On  the  officers  who  com- 
posed his  suite  when  he  visited  Malmaison  and  on 
those  who  were  aware  of  his  friendship  with  Mme. 
Walewska  he  imposed  caution  and  secrecy,  saying 
on  each  occasion  :  "Knowledge  of  this  visit  would 
cause  my  wife  unnecessary  pain."    After  his  second 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  273 

marriage  his  entire  manner  of  life  changed  ;  there 
remained  to  him  from  his  poor,  solitary  and  melan- 
choly youth,  which  was  devoid  of  the  amusements 
natural  to  his  age,  a  taste  for  noisy  and  active  sports 
and  in  that  respect  he,  with  his  forty-one  years  and 
Marie-Louise  with  her  eighteen,  were  well  matched  ; 
if  possible  he  was  the  bigger  child  of  the  two,  and  he 
entered  with  zest  into  amusements  suitable  for  a 
collegian.  The  young  Empress  had  proposed  but  one 
amendment  to  the  cloister-like  existence  mapped  out 
for  her,  she  desired  to  ride  horseback,  which  was  an 
exercise  habitual  with  the  princesses  of  Lorraine 
as  soon  as  they  escaped  the  maternal  rule ;  Marie- 
Antoinette  had  done  the  same,  and  there  is  a  record 
of  Marie-Therese's  objurgations.  Napoleon  himself 
acted  as  riding-master  to  his  young  wife,  and  during 
the  first  lessons  ran  at  her  horse's  side,  bridle  in 
hand,  until  she  had  acquired  sufficient  confidence  to 
ride  alone,  then  daily  the  horses  were  ordered  im- 
mediately after  breakfast,  and,  without  taking  time 
to  put  on  his  boots,  the  Emperor  would  throw  him- 
self into  the  saddle,  and  in  his  stocking-feet  gallop 
up  and  down  the  Grande  Allee  after  his  wife,  excit- 
ing the  horses  to  run  and  greatly  amused  by  her 
cries  and  laughter ;  about  every  ten  feet  a  groom 
was  stationed  in  order  to  avoid  any  accident  to  the 
Empress,  but  it  often  happened  that  the  Emperor 

lo 


274  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

had  the  most  falls.  In  the  evening,  in  the  intimacy 
of  the  household,  he  organized  all  kinds  of  games, 
such  as  blind-man's-buff,  puss-in-the-corner,  cushion- 
and-keys  and  games  of  forfeits  in  which  he  took  an 
active  part.  (Up  to  this  time  Marie-Louise's  only 
social  accomplishment  was  the  ability  to  move  her 
ear  without  moving  a  muscle  of  her  face,  but  she 
now  learned  to  play  billiards,  for  which  game  she 
developed  such  a  passion  and  so  much  talent,  that 
the  Emperor  was  obliged  to  take  lessons  of  one  of  his 
chamberlains  before  he  could  meet  her  on  equal 
terms  ;  she  also  had  a  fancy  for  sketching  his  pro- 
file and  he  was  always  ready  to  pose  for  her,  although 
he  refused  to  sit  for  any  painter  ;  he  listened  atten- 
tively, when,  seated  at  the  piano,  she  played  German 
sonatas,  although  he  had  but  little  taste  for  that 
style  of  music,  and  manifested  a  proper  degree  of 
interest  when  she  showed  him  the  suspenders  or  sash 
she  was  embroidering  for  him.  He  was  always  at 
her  side,  devoted  and  attentive,  endeavoring  to 
amuse  and  distract  his  "  good  Marie-Louise, "  and 
his  bourgeois  habit  of  addressing  her  in  the  second 
person  amazed  the  court,  which  had  returned  to  the 
rigid  etiquette  of  Louis  XIV.  's  time.  Such  an  exist- 
ence and  such  manners  did  not  shock  Marie- Louise, 
she  soon  accustomed  herself  to  the  new  manner  of 
life  and  addressed  her  husband  with  the  familiar 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND.  275 

"  thou, "  gave  friendly  nicknames  to  her  sisters-in-law 
and  called  Madame  Mere  "  mamma  "  ;  but  all  this 
affability  rested  upon  a  condition,  that  her  husband 
should  never  leave  her,  but  should  always  be  at  her 
disposition,  and  he  who,  up  to  that  moment,  had 
regulated  his  days  according  to  his  occupations  and 
the  demands  of  state,  was  now  constrained  to  con- 
ciliate his  occupations — sometimes  to  sacrifice  them 
— to  the  tastes  and  caprices  of  his  wife. 

It  had  previously  been  the  Emperor's  habit  to 
breakfast'  alone  and  hurriedly,  upon  the  corner  of 
his  writing-table  (when  business  permitted  him  to 
breakfast  at  all),  but  he  resigned  himself  to  break- 
fasting with  his  wife  at  a  fixed  hour,  taking  from 
affairs  of  state  the  time  for  an  elaborate  repast  which 
was  most  distasteful  to  him.  Between  the  years  of 
1810  and  1812  the  royal  pair  took  five  long  journeys, 
visiting  Normandy,  Belgium,  Holland,  the  Rhine 
and  Dresden,  and  it  was  not  she  who  waited  for  the 
Emperor  as  Josephine  had  done,  it  was  the  hus-  , 
band's  turn  to  cultivate  his  patience,  for  Marie-  \J 
Louise  was  never  on  time  for  any  social  function  ; 
he  made  all  his  personal  tastes  subservient  to  hers 
and  was  not  only  a  faithful  but  a  loving  and  attentive 
husband,  never  missing  an  occasion  to  give  his  wife 
a  pleasure.  The  magnificent  present  which  he  made 
his  wife  of  a  parure  of  Brazilian  rubies,   costing 


V 


276  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

four  hundred  thousand  francs,  when  she  had  only 
wished  for  one  valued  at  forty-six  thousand,  and 
the  superb  necklace,  consisting  of  eight  strings  of 
pearls,  which  cost  five  hundred  thousand  francs, 
which  he  presented  to  her  after  her  confinement  and 
which  was  stolen  from  Blois,  were  simply  imperial. 
The  fact  which  shows  the  lover  in  the  husband  were 
the  manifold  little  presents  which  he  gave  her,  such 
as  bracelets,  bearing  the-date  of  some  occasion  which 
had  been  particularly  joyous,  loving  words  or  names 
spelt  out  in  precious  stones,  and  was  it  not  a  procla- 
mation of  her  affection  when  she  had  her  own  por- 
trait framed  in  precious  stones  whose  initial  letters 
formed  the  words  "  Louise,  je  faime"  and  placed 
it  upon  her  husband's  writing  desk. 

If  Napoleon  had  not  loved  his  young  wife  he  would 
not  have  taken  umbrage  at  the  slightest  reference 
to  his  affection  in  the  newspaper  or  to  a  verse  where- 
in he  was  represented  as  a  love-sick  shepherd  ;  as  it 
was,  the  moment  he  saw  the  slightest  reference  to 
his  affection  in  print  he  felt  as  though  its  sanctity 
had  been  violated,  and  immediately  wrote  a  furious 
letter  to  the  minister  of  police,  wherein  he  did  not 
deny  his  love,  but  insisted  that  the  newspapers  should 
not  be  permitted  to  comment  upon  it.  Thinking  to 
strengthen  his  wife's  affection,  he  showered  valuable 
presents  of  every  description  upon  each  member  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  277 

her  family,  and  favors  upon  all  the  Austrians  at  his 
court. 

Despite  time,  the  love  which  Marie-Louise  mani- 
fested, and  the  precautions  for  his  marital  security 
which  he  had  taken,  and  which  were  still  carefully 
observed,  he  continued  to  be  suspicious,  and  when 
the  war  with  Eussia  called  him  from  home  he 
arranged  that  a  detailed  account  of  his  wife's  daily 
life  and  actions  should  be  sent  him  by  each  courier  ; 
these  letters  were  written  by  an  illiterate  person 
upon  the  commonest  of  paper,  and  upon  these 
wretched  scrawls  he,  who  was  usually  so  scrupulous 
and  critical,  wrote  questions  and  notes  ;  and  yet  in 
spite  of  this  continual  surveillance  he  dared  not 
openly  take  his  wife  to  task  when  anything  dis- 
pleased him,  but  strove  to  find  an  intermediary  to 
express  his  disapproval. 

Upon  one  occasion  the  Empress,  while  walking  in 
the  park  at  Saint- Cloud  with  Mme.  de  Montebello, 
allowed  the  duchess  to  present  one  of  her  relations 
and  spoke  with  him  for  some  moments  ;  the  follow- 
ing morning  after  the  levee  the  Emperor  detained 
the  Austrian  ambassador  and  recounted  the  affair, 
and  upon  Metternich's  feigning  not  to  comprehend 
what  was  wanted  of  him,  Napoleon  frankly  explained 
that  he  wished  the  ambassador  to  speak  to  the  Em- 
press, and  the  Austrian  refusing  he  insisted,  saying : 


278  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

'*  The  Empress  is  young  and  might  misunderstand 
my  motives,  attributing  them  to  jealousy,  while 
what  you  would  say  to  her  would  make  quite  a  dif- 
ferent impression." 

Napoleon's  best  beloved  mistress,  she  who  had 
most  occupied  his  thoughts,  was  power,  and  this 
power  which  he  had  refused  to  give  to  Josephine,  of 
which  he  had  been  so  jealous  that  neither  his  two 
oldest  counsellors,  his  brothers,  nor  any  living  being 
had  he  ever  even  given  a  shadow  of  authority,  he 
gave,  in  1813,  in  that  time  which  was  most  perilous 
for  his  empire,  to  Marie-Louise  ;  making  her  regent 
of  the  Empire. 

Doubtless  there  was  more  shadow  than  substance 
in  this  abandonment,  and  that  no  grave  decision 
could  be  taken  without  his  consent ;  it  is  probable 
that  a  premonition  of  disaster  assailed  him  even  in 
Kussia,  and  that  by  this  act  he  intended  to  assure 
the  transmission  of  his  crown,  but  in  any  case  it  en- 
tailed a  stripping  of  some  of  his  dearly  loved  au- 
thority, and  he  had  not  hesitated.  Decrees  were 
signed  in  his  name  by  the  Empress,  by  her  pardons 
were  accorded,  nominations  made  and  proclamations 
issued  ;  the  bulletins  by  which,  since  1800,  the  master 
announced  his  victories,  distributed  his  glory  and 
gave  the  accounts  of  his  conquests,  were  things 
of  the  past,  and  it  was  :      "Her  Imperial  Majesty, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  27.9 

Queen  and  Regent,  who  had  received  from  the  army 
information,"  and  the  conscripts  for  the  unfortu- 
nate army  were  called  "  Marie-Louise  men  "  by  the 
people. 

From  head  to  foot  of  the  governmental  ladder 
weaknesses  manifested  themselves  and  treachery 
succeeded.  Napoleon  was  no  longer  there,  even  his 
name  had  disappeared,  while  that  of  Marie-Louise 
was  feared  by  none  and  meant  nothing  to  the  people ; 
still,  Napoleon  would  not  alter  his  decree,  applauded 
the  step  he  had  taken,  and  believed  that  his  wife 
knew  more  than  Cambaceres  or  than  all  the  Bona- 
partes  put  together,  and  the  nearer  the  catastrophe, 
the  more  imminent  the  peril,  the  more  tenaciously 
he  clung  to  the  idea  that  she,  she  alone,  would  be 
his  salvation. 

By  chance — for  she  was  not  responsible  for  his 
departure  from  Paris,  the  capitulation  and  all  the 
rest  —  Marie-Louise  caused  his  final  downfall. 
Napoleon  wrote  her  a  letter,  not  in  cipher,  wherein 
he  indicated  the  movements  which  he  intended  to 
attempt  against  the  allied  armies  ;  this  letter  fell 
into  the  hands  of  Bluecher's  courier,  and  General 
Bluecher  made  haste  to  lay  it,  with  the  seal  broken, 
at  the  feet  of  the  august  daughter  of  his  Imperial 
Majesty  the  Emperor  of  Austria 


280      NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  XVm. 

ELBA. 

It  is  doubtful  if  Napoleon  was  actuated  solely  by 
love  in  the  pursuance  of  the  course  described  in  the 
>i  preceding  chapter,  and  highly  probable  that  his 
actions  were  entirely  due  to  motives  of  policy.  He 
probably  argued  that  when  the  Austrian  Emperor 
found  himself  face  to  face  with  his  daughter  and 
grandson  as  the  representatives  of  France,  he  would 
hesitate  to  strike  the  blow  which  would  ruin  them, 
and  that  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  not  finding  him- 
self, but  one  of  their  own  rank  seated  upon  the 
French  throne,  would  hesitate  to  overthrow  it,  and, 
believing  themselves  interested  in  the  tranquillity  of 
France,  would  accept  and  confirm  the  substitution, 
that  though  he  himself  might  be  forced  to  abdicate, 
the  dynasty  which  he  had  established  would  be 
assured. 

In  order  to  admit  the  truth  of  this  hypothesis  one 
must  admit  that,  from  the  year  1813,  before  Liitzen, 


KAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       281 

before  the  first  campaign,  wherein  he  constantly 
manifested  his  confidence  in  his  continued  success, 
Napoleon  was  at  heart  despairing ;  that  he  had 
latent  doubts  about  Austria,  and  considered  Marie- 
Louise  as  a  pledge  of  coalition,  trusted  in  the  bond 
of  paternity,  and  relied  upon  the  good  faith  of 
Francis  II.,  the  father. 

To  divine  such  a  conspiracy  as  the  aristocrats  of 
Europe  had  woven  against  him,  to  foresee  that  the 
young  girl  who  had  been  given  him  as  wife  was  the 
lure  prepared  by  the  allied  oligarchies  to  entrap 
him,  would  have  required  an  insight  into  the  depths 
of  royal  unscrupulousness  which  even  a  Talleyrand 
and  a  Fouche  might  be  incapable  of. 

In  order  to  conceive  and  carry  out  such  a  design, 
to  coalesce  around  a  nuptial  bed  the  hate  of  all  the 
old  dynasties,  the  profound  corruption  which  is  met 
with  solely  in  the  highest  circles  was  alone  capable  ; 
in  these  circles  education  and  tradition  have  rendered 
men  unscrupulous,  they  become  accustomed  to  dis- 
regard all  laws,  human  or  divine,  which  militate 
against  their  interests  and  to  carry  their  designs 
into  execution  regardless  of  the  means  employed, 
seeing  therein  no  dishonor.  In  this  instance  it  was 
not  a  mistress  but  a  wife  which  had  to  be  furnished 
to  encompass  their  object,  and  what  mattered  it  if 
the  wheels  of  their  triumphant  chariot,  while  crush- 


\ 


282  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

ing  the  impious  being  who  had  outraged  the  sacred 
monarchical  system,  also  rolled  over  the  shuddering 
form  and  blonde  locks  of  an  archduchess.  Should 
she  survive  the  ordeal,  means  should  be  found  to 
console  her,  should  she  die — well,  it  could  not  be 
helped,  for  the  attainment  of  such  an  end  something 
must  be  risked  and  Marie-Louise  was  only  a  woman. 
Napoleon  never  suspected  such  a  despicable  con- 
spiracy, never  admitted  that  his  wife  was  the 
accomplice  of  his  enemies  ;  nor  was  she,  for  care 
had  been  taken  to  conceal  from  her  the  role  she  was 
destined  to  play,  and  she  enacted  it  the  better  because 
of  her  innocence.  It  was  not  until  much  later, 
at  Saint  Helena,  that  Napoleon  traced  the  continuity 
between  his  second  marriage  and  the  disasters  which 
followed  it ;  even  then  he  did  not  sound  the  plot  to 
its  very  depth,  either  because  it  displeased  him  to 
elucidate  the  principal  reason  of  his  downfall,  or 
because  it  pained  him  to  smirch  the  memory  of  his 
wife  by  connecting  her  with  so  vile  a  scheme.  He 
frequently  remarked  :  "  My  marriage  was  a  flower- 
covered  pit  which  they  dug  for  me  ; "  and  instead  of 
harboring  resentment  against  this  woman  who  had 
been  the  cause  of  his  downfall,  he  showed  her  more 
affection  and  greater  confidence,  as  if  to  console  her 
for  the  pain  and  disillusion  caused  by  the  aggressive- 
ness of  her  native  land  and  the  menacing  attitude  of 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  283 

her  father,  which  he  believed  she  could  not  fail  to 
regard  as  treacherous  towards  her  and  hers. 

When  the  campaign  of  1812  opened  Napoleon 
apparently  entertained  no  doubts  of  his  ultimate 
success,  it  was  his  nature  to  hope  even  against  hope, 
and  it  was  not  until  much  later  that  he  was  forced 
to  admit  the  possibility  of  the  enemies  entering 
Paris  and  carrying  away  the  Empress  and  the 
King  of  Rome.  He  believed  that  theirs  would  be 
but  a  brief  triumph,  for  the  momentary  occupation 
of  Paris  did  not  alter  his  strategic  plans,  but  he 
could  not  suffer  the  thought  that  his  wife  and  son 
should  be,  even  momentarily,  hostages  in  the  hands 
of  his  adversaries,  and  it  was  to  spare  them  such  an 
insult  that  he  ordered  Joseph  to  abandon  Paris,  thus 
taking  from  it  its  statesmen  and  resisting  elements 
and  compromising  the  entire  edifice  of  his  plans,  for 
Talleyrand  knew  how  to  avoid  the  injunction  to 
follow  the  court.  His  plans  had  long  been  laid,  he 
had  ingratiated  himself  into  the  confidence  of  King 
Joseph,  the  Empress,  the  prefecture  of  the  Seine 
and  the  police  ;  he  had  accomplices  everywhere 
over  whom  he  exercised  a  strong  and  inexplicable 
influence  and  who  seemed  bound  to  him  by  an 
infernal  pact ;  and  with  them  he  accomplished, 
in  1814,  the  treason  which  he  began  to  plot  at 
Tilsit  in  1807.     But  the  overthrowal  of  Napoleon's 


284  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND. 

government  was  but  half  the  task  the  Prince  of 
Benevent  had  set  himself,  the  whole  would  be  ac- 
complished only  when  he  had  succeeded  in  breaking 
the  bonds  which  he  himself  had  helped  to  forge 
between  Napoleon  and  Marie-Louise. 

The  Emperor  believed  that  whatever  misfortunes 
fate  might  have  in  store  for  him  he  should  always 
have  the  supreme  consolation  afforded  by  the 
pleasures  of  home  and  the  company  of  his  wife  and 
son,  and  that  he  had  not  secured  a  formal  promise 
from  the  Empress  to  rejoin  him  at  Fontainebleau 
was  because  he  still  imagined  that  her  tears  might 
move  the  Emperor  Francis  and  her  future  con- 
dition be  ameliorated.  He  argued  that  a  certain 
sovereignty  would  always  be  hers  by  right  of  birth, 
that  she  would  be  affectionate  to  him,  who  would 
resign  himself  to  the  existence  of  a  petty  prince,  and, 
believing  that  she  had  loved  in  him  rather  the  man 
than  the  sovereign,  thought  that  there  might  yet 
be  happiness  in  store  for  them  and  for  the  child 
whose  mental  and  physical  development  they  would 
watch  over. 

/  Marie-Louise  was  fond  of  her  husband,  disposed 
V  to  sympathize  with  his  hopes  and  plans,  and  willing 
to  rejoin  him  when  the  occasion  offered,  but  she  was 
surrounded  by  people  whose  influence  was  all  in  a 
contrary  direction,  and  accustomed  from  childhood 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       285 

to  have  others  think  for  her,  to  be  guided  and  ruled, 
it  is  not  strange  that  she  should  have  found  it  hard 
to  follow  the  dictates  of  her  heart  and  conscience. 
The  love  which  she  entertained  for  Napoleon  was 
strong  enough  to  impel  her  to  faithfulness,  and  it 
was  Talleyrand  who  took  upon  himself  the  task 
of  blighting  it.  With  this  object  in  view  he  had 
placed  near  Marie- Louise  a  woman  who  was  heart 
and  soul  in  his  schemes,  who  was  naturally  an  in- 
triguant, and  who,  whenever  she  had  been  able  to 
introduce  herself  into  a  diplomatic  project,  had 
been  quite  in  her  element  ;  utterly  unscrupulous, 
ignoring  the  virtue  of  gratitude,  she  was  precisely 
the  tool  whom  he  required.  As  lady-in-waiting  this 
woman  had  ready  access  to  Marie-Louise's  ear,  and 
when  the  other  ladies  abandoned  their  posts  and 
returned  to  their  homes  Mme.  de  Brignole  remained 
with  the  Empress,  and,  left  almost  alone  with  her, 
seized  the  occasion  to  obey  Talleyrand's  instructions 
and  to  instil  the  poison  of  doubt  into  Marie-Louise's 
mind.  Instigated  by  her  master,  Mme.  de  Brignole 
firgt  insinuated,  then  affirmed,  that  Napoleon  had 
never  loved  his  wife,  but  had  constantly  deceived 
her,  and  when  the  Empress  refused  to  believe  she 
sent  for  two  valets,  who  had  just  abandoned  their 
sovereign  and  benefactor  at  Fontainebleau,  and  had 
them  confirm  all  her  lying  tales. 


4 


286  NAPOLEON,  LOVEK   AND    HUSBAND. 

There  was  no  one  at  hand  to  inspire  with  courage 
and  confidence  the  irresolute  young  girl  who  was 
more  wounded  by  the  accounts  of  her  husband's  in- 
fidelities than  prostrated  by  the  fall  of  her  throne  ; 
and  as  she  had  once  allowed  herself  to  be  sacrificed, 
like  a  modern  Iphigenia,  so  now  she  acquiesced  and 
stood  inertly  by,  while  political  expedience  sundered 
the  domestic  ties,  which  it  had  soldered.  This  com- 
pliance was  not  won  in  a  day,  for  Marie-Louise  strug- 
gled nearly  a  year  against  overwhelming  obstacles, 
every  sentiment  was  brought  into  play  to  alienate 
her  affection  from  her  husband  :  pride,  jealousy, 
envy,  vanity,  all  were  employed,  and  Bonaparte's 
enemies  triumphed  only  when  they  had  succeeded  in 
replacing  his  image  in  her  heart  by  that  of  another, 
when  the  chaste  Emperor  of  Austria  had  forced  his 
daughter  into  a  position  which  publicly  compromised 
her  :  then  monarchal  Europe  applauded,  and  the 
adultress  was  recompensed  by  the  sovereignty  of 
Parma  and  Placentia. 

Napoleon  never  dreamt  of  such  abjection  ;  from 
each  of  the  stopping-places  where  he  rested  upon  his 
sad  journey  he  wrote  a  letter  to  his  wife,  as  formerly 
he  had  written  when  she  was  making  her  triumphal 
journey  towards  Paris,  greeted  by  the  chiming  of' 
bells,  the  cannon's  thunder,  and  the  military  salute 
of    imperial     marshals.      The    defeated    Emperor, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  287 

wending  his  way  across  Europe  under  the  watchful 
eyes  of  the  military  escort  assigned  hy  the  alii  s,  with 
the  populace's  cries  of  hatred  ringing  in  his  ears, 
never  forgot  his  wife  ;  but  of  all  the  letters  which  he 
wrote  but  two  have  been  published ;  they  are  ad- 
dressed to  "  My  good,  my  dear  Louise."  Forgetful 
of  his  own  sufferings  he  wrote  to  her  of  the  pain  she 
must  experience,  made  tender  inquiries  regarding 
her  health  and  urged  her  to  be  courageous  and  brave. 
Care  had  been  taken  to  inform  Napoleon  that  Marie- 
Louise's  health  rendered  it  imperative  that  she  should 
take  a  course  of  the  waters  at  Aix  ;  it  was  a  means 
of  retarding  their  reunion  and,  consciously  or  not, 
Corvisart  had  lent  his  aid  to  the  Emperor's  enemies  ; 
but  of  this,  as  of  all  the  rest,  Napoleon  was  un- 
suspicious, and,  rejoicing  in  Corvisart's  devotion,  he 
addressed  him  a  letter  from  Frejus  which,  if  it  was 
merited,  is  the  physician's  greatest  glory,  and  far 
from  opposing  the  journey  to  Aix  the  Emperor  en- 
couraged it.  He  thought  that  though  Marie-Louise 
might  not  be  able  to  come  immediately  to  Elba,  she 
would  surely  hasten  to  install  herself  at  Parma,  and, 
in  order  that  she  should  miss  none  of  the  accessories 
of  rank  to  which  she  was  accustomed,  he  dispatched 
a  detachment  of  Polish  light  horse  to  that  city  to 
await  her  arrival  and  sent  a  large  supply  of  carriage 
horses  for  her  use. 


288       NAPOLEON,  LOVEK  AND  HUSBAND. 

Hardly  had  Napoleon  reached  Porto-Ferrajo  than 
he  began  to  arrange  the  Empress's  apartments  in  the 
palaces  destined  for  his  residence,  hastening  the 
work  with  the  idea  that  she  might  arrive  at  any 
hour.  He  intended  to  celebrate  her  coming  with 
fireworks  and  a  grand  ball,  awaited  her  arrival  to 
make  various  excursions  to  points  of  interest  about 
the  island,  and,  although  foreign  to  his  nature  to 
give  public  expression  to  his  sentiments,  he  ordered 
the  painter  who  was  decorating  the  drawing-room 
ceiling  to  depict  there  "  two  pigeons  fastened  to- 
gether by  a  slip-knot  which  tightened  as  they  sep- 
arated." 

It  was  on  Marie-Louise's  account  that  Napoleon 
kept  the  visit  of  Mme.  Walewska  shrouded  in 
mystery.  She  had  been  to  Naples  to  reclaim  from 
Murat  the  endowment  which  the  Emperor  had  ac- 
corded her  from  the  property  which  he  had  reserved, 
and  which  Murat  had  confiscated,  and  profiting 
from  the  relaxed  surveillance  at  Porto-Ferrajo  she 
had  solicited  an  interview  with  the  Emperor. 

Bonaparte  was  then  installed  at  the  hermitage  of 
the  Madonna  de  Marciana  which  was  situated  in  the 
heart  of  a  forest  of  aged  chestnuts,  in  whose  shade 
the  intense  heat  of  the  Corsican  summer  was  more 
endurable.  The  Emperor  occupied  a  small  house 
close  to  the  chapel,  and  the  hermits,  whom  he  had 


napoleon,  Lover  and  husband.  289 

not  wished  to  dispos'sess,  were  installed  in  the  cellar, 
while  for  the  accommodation  of  his  suite  which  con- 
sisted of  a  captain  of  mounted  police,  named  Paoli- 
Bernotti,  an  officer  of  ordinance,  several  Mamalukes 
and  two  valets  de  chambre,  Marchand  and  Saint 
Denis,  a  large  tent  had  been  erected  under  the 
chestnut  trees  and  close  to  a  little  spring  which  lost 
itself  in  a  carpet  of  fresh  moss  besprinkled  with 
wild  lilies  of  the  valley  and  violets.  Dinner  was 
never  served  at  the  hermitage,  the  Emperor  descend- 
ing every  evening  to  Marciana  and  dining  with  his 
mother,  who  was  installed  there. 

On  the  receipt  of  Mme.  Walewska's  letter  the 
Emperor  at  once  prepared  for  her  visit,  but  the 
orders  regarding  the  arrangements  for  her  reception 
were  so  given  that  the  name  of  the  expected  guest 
was  kept  a  profound  secret.  She  disembarked  at 
Porto-Ferrajo  during  the  night  of  September  1st, 
and  found  awaiting  her  on  the  quay  a  carriage  and 
four,  and  three  saddled  horses  in  charge  of  Bernotti. 
Accompanied  by  her  sister  and  little  son  she  entered 
the  carriage,  while  her  brother,  Colonel  Laczinski, 
mounted  one  of  the  horses,  and  in  the  bright  moon- 
light they  set  off  for  Marciana.  The  Emperor,  ac- 
companied by  Paoli  and  two  Mamalukes  awaited 
their  coming  at  Procchio,  and  there  Mme.  Walewska 

was  also  obliged  to  mount  one  of  the  horses  as  it 
19 


290  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

was  impossible  for  the  carriage  to  go  further  ;  Ber- 
notti  took  charge  of  the  little  boy  and  the  party 
finally  arrived  at  the  summit  of  the  mountain.  Dis- 
mounting before  the  hermitage  the  Emperor  as- 
sisted Mme.  Walewska  from  her  saddle,  and,  hat  in 
hand  pointed  to  the  house  saying  :  "  Madame,  there 
is  my  palace  to  which  you  are  heartily  welcome  ;  " 
and  abandoning  the  house  to  the  ladies  he  himself 
went  to  sleep  in  the  tent  which  sheltered  his  suite 
and  servants. 

The  close  of  the  night  was  stormy,  and  in  the 
early  morning  the  Emperor,  who  had  been  unable 
to  sleep,  called  Marchand  and  questioned  him  as  to 
whether  any  gossip  had  been  caused  by  the  arrival 
of  his  visitors  ;  he  was  informed  by  the  valet  that  it 
was  rumored  in  Porto-Ferrajo  that  the  mysterious 
lady  was  none  other  than  the  Empress,  and  the  child 
the  little  King  of  Rome,  and  that,  moved  by  this 
rumor,  Doctor  Foureau  had  hastened  to  the  hermit- 
age to  offer  his  services  and  was  at  that  moment 
awaiting  the  Emperor's  command. 

Napoleon  dressed  and  left  the  tent.  The  morning 
was  bright  and  beautiful  with  no  trace  of  the  furi- 
ous storm  of  the  previous  night,  and  on  the  mount- 
ain side  in  the  bright  sunshine,  the  mysterious 
child  was  playing  happily.  The  Emperor  called  the 
boy  and  seating  himself  in  a  chair  which  Marchand 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  291 

brought,  took  him  upon  his  knee ;  he  then  sent  the 
valet  in  search  of  Dr.  Foureau  and  when  the  latter 
appeared  said,  pointing  to  the  child: ' '  Well,  Foureau, 
what  do  you  think  of  him  ?"  "Sire,"  responded  the 
Doctor,  "the  king  has  grown  tremendously,"  at 
which  answer  Napoleon  laughed  heartily,  for  young 
Walewski  was  a  year  older  than  the  King  of  Rome, 
but  his  beautiful  features  and  the  blond  curls  which 
fell  in  profusion  over  his  shoulders  caused  him  to 
resemble  his  half-brother  closely,  or  rather,  to  re- 
semble Isabey's  popular  portrait  of  the  King  of 
Rome. 

Napoleon  chatted  for  some  moments  with  the 
physician,  then,  thanking  him  for  the  friendship 
manifested  by  the  prompt  offer  of  his  services,  dis- 
missed him  and  turned  to  greet  Mme.  Walewska 
whom  he  espied  about  leaving  the  hermitage. 
Breakfast,  which  had  been  ordered  from  Marciana, 
was  served  under  the  chestnut  trees ;  the  meal 
passed  off  gaily,  and  the  rest  of  the  day  was  spent 
by  the  Emperor  and  Mme.  Walewska  in  walking 
and  talking  together. 

At  dinner  the  Emperor  desired  that  the  boy,  of 
whom  he  had  seen  but  little  during  the  day,  should 
sit  at  his  side,  and  when  Mme.  Walewska  objected 
on  the  score  of  the  child's  boisterous  ways  he  in- 
sisted,   saying  that  he    did  not    mind   the    child's 


292  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

roguishness,  his  own  childhood  having  been  a  tur- 
bulent one.  When  they  were  seated  at  table  the 
Emperor  recounted  anecdotes  of  his  boyhood  telling 
how  he  used  to  beat  his  brother  Joseph  and  force 
him  to  do  his  bidding,  and  how  his  mother  had 
punished  him  by  giving  him  only  dry  bread  to  eat 
— bread  which  he  had  given  to  the  shepherd  boys 
in  exchange  for  their  chestnut  bread,  or  else  thrown 
away  and  gone  to  his  foster-mother's  where  he  was 
fed  on  the  best  the  house  afforded  and  caressed  to 
his  heart's  content.  Young  Walewska,  who  had  at 
first  been  overawed  by  the  presence  of  so  many 
grown  people  at  table  and  had  behaved  in  most  ex- 
emplary manner,  was  emboldened  by  the  Emperor's 
stories  to  give  vent  to  his  naturally  high  spirits, 
whereupon  Napoleon  said  : 

"  I  see,  my  lad,  that  you  don't  fear  the  whip.  .  .  . 
well  I  advise  you  to  !  I  never  got  a  beating  but 
once,  but  I've  never  forgotten  it."  He  then  went 
on  to  relate  how  Pauline  and  himself  had  once  made 
sport  of  their  mother  and  been  soundly  whipped  by 
her  in  consequence.  The  boy  listened  attentively, 
and  when  the  Emperor  had  finished  speaking  ex- 
claimed with  an  air  of  conviction  :  "I  shall  never 
be  whipped  for  that,  I  would  not  make  fun  of  my 
mother,"  whereupon  the  Emperor  embraced  him 
tenderly  saying, "  That  was  well  said." 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND.  293 

At  eight  o'clock  that  evening  the  visitors  returned 
to  Ponte-Ferrajo,  and  re-embarked  for  Naples ;  in 
indemnification  for  the  confiscations  of  Murat,  Mme. 
Walewska  carried  with  her  a  draft  on  the  Emperor's 
treasurer  for  sixty-one  thousand  francs.  It  is  said 
that  her  stay  at  Naples  was  so  prolonged,  that 
March  of  1815  still  found  her  there. 

In  spite  of  all  the  precautions  taken  to  keep  Mme. 
Walewska's  visit  to  Elba  a  secret,  it  became  known, 
for  there  were  too  many  people  interested  in  the 
Emperor's  movements,  too  many  spies  about  him,  to 
keep  such  a  visit  from  being  talked  of.  The  islanders 
insisted  that  the  mysterious  lady  was  Marie-Louise, 
but  the  English  and  Bourbon  spies  were  better  in- 
formed, and  their  employers  believed  that  this  visit 
heralded  the  renewal  of  the  Emperor's  relations  with 
the  Polish  woman.  In  reality,  Mme.  Walewska's 
journey  to  Elba  was  actuated  rather  by  friendship 
and  sympathy  than  by  love,  and  the  presence  of  her 
sister,  Mile.  Laczinska,  at  the  Hermitage,  proves 
that  the  visit  was  a  conventional  one. 

If  Napoleon  had  any  love-affair  while  at  Elba,  it 
certainly  was  not  with  the  so-called  Countess  de 
Eohan,  who  was  but  a  vulgar  adventuress,  and 
went  to  the  island  to  reclaim  no  one  knows  what, 
from  the  Emperor,  and  to  offer  him  her  company  in 
his  exile,  but  rather  with  a  woman  who  has  been 


¥.. 


294  napoleon,  lover  and  husband. 

much  less  discussed  ;  the  same  whom  he  had  received 
3everal  times  in  his  apartments  in  the  orangery, 
at  Saint- Cloud,  and  who,  unsolicited,  repaired  to 
Ponte-Ferrajo.  Whether  this  lady  was  married 
to  Colonel  B  *  *  *  *  when  she  went  to  Elba,  or  mar- 
ried him  there  is  not  known,  but,  wed  or  not,  her 
devotion  to  the  fallen  Emperor  was  great,  and  it  is 
unfortunate  that  so  little  is  known  regarding  the 
details  of  her  life.  What  we  do  know  is,  that,  not 
content  with  having  followed  Napoleon  to  Elba,  she 
went  to  Rambouillet  in  1815  and  besought  his  per- 
mission to  follow  him  to  St.  Helena,  that  she  was 
heart-broken  at  his  refusal,  and  that  with  three 
thousand  francs  which  were  given  her,  she  went  to 
the  United  States,  where  she  hoped  to  find  him. 

Little  attention  seems  to  have  been  attracted  by 
Napoleon's  intimacy  with  this  woman,  while  certain 
letters,  written  by  a  miserable  priest  in  the  pay  of 
the  Duke  de  Blacas,  have  been  republished  period- 
ically ;  these  letters  were  written  with  the  view  of 
accrediting  calumnious  reports  which  were  then 
afloat,  and  it  is  needless  to  dwell  upon  them  here. 

While  at  Elba,  Napoleon  passed  through  a  moral 
and  political  crisis  which  rendered  the  greatest  re- 
serve obligatory  ;  he  knew  that  the  slightest  indis- 
cretion would  be  related  to  Marie- Louise,  and  en- 
larged upon  by  his  enemies  who  surrounded  her, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  295 

and  that  she  would  be  deeply  wounded  thereby. 
He  had  sent  Captain  Hurault  de  Sorbee,  the  husband 
of  one  of  her  ladies,  to  Aix-les-Bains,  with  instruc- 
tions to  essay  to  speak  with  the  Empress,  and  deliver 
his  messages  in  person,  and  had  received  news  which 
led  him  to  hope  that  a  regular  correspondence  would 
soon  be  established  between  them  ;  thus  it  was 
scarcely  the  moment  to  become  entangled  in  a 
scandalous  intrigue.  Time  passed,  the  month  of 
September  dragged  its  weary  length  along  without 
bringing  the  Emperor  a  word  from  his  wife  or  son, 
and  at  length,  worn  out  by  anxiety  and  unfulfilled 
hope,  he  determined  to  write  to  the  Duke  of  Tuscany, 
upon  whose  friendship  he  still  relied  and  whom  he 
had  designated  to  his  wife  as  their  natural  inter- 
mediary. The  letter  he  sent  the  duke  was  not  sup- 
plicatory, from  the  manner  in  which  he  addressed, 
as  "  My  dear  brother  and  uncle ;  "  it  is  evident  that 
Napoleon  remembered  the  favors  his  highness  had 
received  at  his  hands,  and  believed  that  the  one-time 
parasite  of  Compiegne  must  also  bear  them  in  mind. 
"  Having  received  no  news  of  my  wife  since  August 
10th,  nor  of  my  son  in  six  months,"  he  writes,  "  I 
beg  your  royal  highness  to  inform  me  if  you  will 
permit  me  to  send  weekly  letters  to  my  wife  in  your 
care,  whether  you  will  undertake  to  keep  me  in- 
formed regarding  her  health,  etc.,  and  to  forward 


296  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

letters  from  my  son's  governess,  Mme.  de  Montee- 
quiou.  I  natter  myself  that,  in  spite  of  the  events 
which  have  changed  so  many  persons,  your  high- 
ness still  entertains  some  friendship  for  me  ;  if  you 
assure  me  of  this  by  granting  my  request,  it  will  be 
a  great  consolation  and  comfort,  and,  in  that  case, 
I  beg  your  highness  to  show  yourself  favorably 
disposed  towards  this  little  canton  which  shares  the 
loyal  sentiments  of  Tuscany  for  your  person.  I 
trust  your  highness  does  not  doubt  the  sincerity  of 
the  sentiments  I  have  always  expressed,  nor  my 
esteem  and  regard  :  and  I  beg  to  be  kindly  remem- 
bered to  your  highness's  children." 

It  was  simply  a  question  of  a  friendly  service  to  be 
rendered  one  who  confessed  himself  unhappy  and 
admitted  himself  defeated,  and  who,  to  soften  the 
prince's  heart,  almost  avowed  himself  his  subject, 
yet  it  was  not  a  supplication,  and  the  old  equality, 
nay,  superiority  of  rank,  pierces  through  the  care- 
fully-worded lines.  There  was  no  answer  to  this 
letter,  for  the  drama  was  ended,  the  imperial  house 
of  Austria  had  succeeded  in  dishonoring  its  daughter, 
and  the  Empress  of  France  had  fallen  so  low  as  to 
become  the  mistress  of  her  own  chamberlain. 

After  such  a  letter,  written  to  such  a  man,  Napo- 
leon would  not  take  any  further  action  ;  his  wife 
and  child  had  been  stolen  from  him,  the  Bourbons 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  297 

no  longer  paid  the  annual  sum  stipulated  for  at 
Fontainebleau,  and  he  saw  that  he  should  be  forced 
to  disband  his  guard,  and,  unable  to  offer  even  a 
semblance  of  resistance,  be  killed  with  his  faithful 
followers,  should  the  allied  sovereigns  order  his 
transportation  to  some  remote  island,  the  Azores 
for  example,  as  Talleyrand  had  suggested  on  the 
13th  of  October,  because,  as  he  then  said  :  "They 
were  five  hundred  miles  from  any  land." 

The  Emperor  foresaw  that  he  must  either  submit    \ 
to  being  transported  by  the  sovereigns,  or   assas- 
sinated by  the  bandits  in  Brulart's  pay  ;  and  prefer- 
ring to  make  a  supreme  effort  and  risk  all  for 
Prance,  determined  upon  his  return. 


298  .NAPOLEON,  LOVJfiJ*  AND  HUSBAND. 


4 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  HUNDRED  DAYS. 

On  New  Year's  day,  1815,  Napoleon  had  received  a 
letter  from  the  Empress,  giving  him  news  of  their 
son,  telling  what  a  handsome  and  charming  child 
he  was,  and  that  he  would  soon  be  able  to  write  him- 
self to  his  father.  It  is  impossible  to  say  why  this 
letter  was  written,  possibly  it  was  prompted  by  re- 
morse, but  whatever  actuated  Marie-Louise  it  served 
to  strengthen  the  tie  between  herself  and  Napoleon, 
and  confirmed  his  conviction  that  she  had  never 
abandoned  the  intention  of  rejoining  him,  that  her 
silence  was  compulsory,  and  that,  were  she  free  to 
do  so,  she  would  hasten  to  his  side. 

He  was  convinced  that,  had  he  a  throne  to  offer, 
Marie-Louise's  jailors  would  set  her  at  liberty,  and 
as  soon  as  he  felt  assured  of  the  success  of  his  enter- 
prise he  hastened  to  inform  her,  writing  from  Lyons 
on  the  12th  of  March.  Marie-Louise,  however,  did 
with  this  letter,  as  she  had  done  with  all  those  she 
had  received  from  Elba,  handed  it  over  to  her  father 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND   HUSBAND.  299 

who  communicated  its  contents  to  the  allied  pleni- 
potentiaries, and  Napoleon  received  no  answer. 

Immediately  upon  re-entering  Paris  the  Emperor 
ordered  that  the  Empress's  apartments  should  be  put 
in  order  and  re-established  her  household  upon  its 
old  footing.  Ten  days  later,  upon  the  1st  of  April,  he 
wrote  an  official  letter  to  the  Austrian  Emperor 
wherein  he  reclaimed  the  "  objects  of  my  tenderest 
affection,  my  wife  and  son."  "As,"  he  wrote, 
"  the  long  separation  necessitated  by  circumstances 
has  caused  me  the  greatest  sorrow  I  have  ever  ex- 
perienced, I  desire  that  my  wife  and  child  be  speedily 
restored  to  me,  and  am  assured  that  our  reunion  is 
as  earnestly  desired  by  the  virtuous  princess,  whose 
destiny  Your  Majesty  united  with  mine,  as  by  my- 
self ;  "  and  he  terminated  the  letter  by  saying  :  "  I 
know  too  well  Your  Majesty's  principles  and  the 
value  Your  Highness  places  upon  family- ties  not  to 
feel  assured  that,  despite  the  disposition  of  your 
cabinet,  or  questions  of  political  expediency,  Your 
Majesty  will  accelerate  the  reunion  of  a  wife  with 
her  husband,  a  son  with  his  father." 

Like  the  others  this  letter  remained  unanswered, 
and  the  obstinate  silence,  opposed  alike  to  official  and 
family  letters,  confirmed  Napoleon's  belief  that  it 
was  the  political  attitude  of  the  house  of  Austria 
and  the  pressure  brought  to  bear  upon  her  which 


800  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND    HUSBAND. 

paralyzed  the  natural  desire  of  his  wife  and  pre- 
vented her  rejoining  him,  he  therefore  determined 
to  employ  secret  means  for  communicating  with  her. 
With  this  object  he  sent  to  Vienna  carefully  chosen 
messengers,  Flahaut  and  Montrond,  men  who  could 
be  trusted  and  who  possessed  facilities  for  approach- 
ing Marie-Louise.  Montrond  alone  pierced  the  lines, 
but  when  he  was  about  to  give  to  the  Empress  the 
letter  of  which  he  was  the  bearer,  Meneval  inter- 
posed. The  ci-devant  secretary  of  Napoleon,  who 
had  become,  in  1813,  the  Empress's  secretary  and  had 
followed  her  to  Austria,  understood  only  too  well 
the  relations  existing  between  his  royal  mistress  and 
Count  Neipperg,  and  he  felt  that  in  burning  the 
Emperor's  tender  letter  which  he  had  written  to  his 
wife,  he  was  rendering  him  a  service.  Nevertheless, 
Meneval  dared  not  write  directly  to  Napoleon  in- 
forming him  of  the  real  state  of  affairs,  for  he  real- 
ized what  a  terrible  blow  it  would  be  to  his  master, 
and  he  therefore  determined  to  inform  one  in  whose 
unwavering  fidelity  he  had  implicit  confidence  of 
the  liaison,  and  wrote  an  anonymous  letter  to  La- 
vallette  ;  Count  de  Lavallette,  however,  saw  in  this 
anonymous  communication  only  a  political  machina- 
tion, and  it  is  not  strange  that  Napoleon  shared  his 
views. 

They  were  soon  to  be  enlightened,  however,  for 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  301 

Ballouhey,  secretary  of  expenses  for  the  two  Em- 
presses and  a  man  whose  fidelity  and  honesty  were 
unquestionable,  was  en  route  from  Vienna  by  way 
of  Munich,  where  he  was  to  receive  some  instruc- 
tions from  Prince  Eugene.  The  Emperor  was  so 
impatient  to  see  Ballouhey  that  he  ordered  his  arrival 
at  Belfort  to  be  telegraphed  him,  and  stationed  an 
orderly  at  his  house  in  Paris  with  instructions  to 
conduct  the  secretary  to  the  Elysee  the  instant  he 
appeared. 

Ballouhey  reached  Paris  on  the  28th  of  April  and 
was  closeted  for  two  hours  with  the  Emperor,  but, 
though  Napoleon  received  a  clear  and  concise  state- 
ment of  Prince  Eugene's  ideas  of  the  political  situa- 
tion, he  failed  to  obtain  definite  information  upon 
the  subject  nearest  his  heart.  Ballouhey  was  a 
scrupulously  exact  accountant ;  he  had  been  deeply 
attached  both  to  Josephine  and  Marie-Louise  ;  but  he 
was  a  timorous  man  and  dared  not  affirm  the  truth 
of  the  scandalous  liaison  which  was  an  open  secret 
in  Vienna. 

Meneval,  expelled  from  Vienna,  arrived  a  fort- 
night later,  and  from  him  the  whole  truth  was 
learned.  On  taking  leave  of  the  Empress  she  had 
charged  him  to  say  to  his  imperial  master  "that, 
while  she  would  take  no  step  towards  securing  a 
divorce,  she  believed  he  would  offer  no  objection  to 


302  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

an  amicable  separation."  "  Such  a  separation,"  she 
said,  "was  indispensable,  but  it  would  not  impair 
the  sentiments  of  esteem  and  gratitude  which  she  en- 
tertained for  him,"  and  she  added  that  "  her  decision 
to  remain  apart  from  Napoleon  was  irrevocable,  and 
not  even  her  father  had  the  right  to  oblige  her  to 
return  to  France. "  It  was  Marie-Louise  who,  put- 
ting herself  under  the  protection  of  the  allied  pleni- 
potentiaries in  an  official  letter  dated  March  12th, 
provoked  the  furious  declaration  which  was  signed 
by  them  on  the  13th,  and  in  recompense  for  her  act 
Count  Neipperg  was  created  court  chamberlain  ;  and 
it  was  with  her  consent  that,  on  the  18th  of  March, 
the  little  King  of  Kome  was  separated  from  his  gov- 
erness, Mme.  de  Montesquiou,  and  deprived  of  all  his 
French  servants. 

Undoubtedly,  Meneval  added  other,  and  more 
private  details,  for  it  was  no  longer  right  to  conceal 
the  monstrous  truth  ;  possibly  Marie-Louise  was 
then  in  the  early  stages  of  one  of  those  pregnancies 
which  were  to  people  the  avenues  of  Burg  with 
adulterous  bastards,  entitled  princes  and  highnesses 
to  the  everlasting  shame  of  the  royal  house  of 
Austria. 

When,  after  the  birth  of  the  King  of  Kome, 
Dubois,  the  accoucheur,  affirmed  that  a  second 
child  would  imperil  Marie-Louise's  life,  Napoleon, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      303 

despite  his  desire  for  numerous  offspring  and  a 
second  son  to  sit  on  the  throne  of  Italy,  had  bowed 
to  the  physician's  decision  :  M.  de  Neipperg  had  no 
such  scruples  and  proved  repeatedly  that  Baron 
Dubois  had  been  mistaken.  Although  the  Emperor 
could  no  longer  doubt  the  unfaithfulness  of  Marie- 
Louise,  it  was  necessary  to  keep  the  truth  from  the 
nation  and  essential  that  the  people  should  conserve 
their  illusions  regarding  their  Empress ;  twelve 
months  previous  he  considered  that  nothing  would 
appeal  more  to  the  people  than  the  thought  of  that 
woman  and  child  confided  to  France ;  to-day  the 
captivity  in  which  they  were  held,  the  separation 
which  violated  all  laws,  human  and  divine,  the 
attempted  violation  of  conjugal  faith  and  paternal 
love  committed  by  the  sovereigns  in  arms  for  the 
re-establishment  in  France  of  a  government  like 
their  own,  seemed  to  him  of  a  nature  to  appeal  to 
every  generous  and  honest  instinct  in  the  heart  of 
men  and  patriots.  The  grief  which  the  Empress 
felt  when  she  was  torn  from  the  post  which  it  was 
her  duty  to  fill,  the  thirty  sleepless  nights  which 
she  had  passed  in  1814,  the  real  imprisonment  to 
which  she  had  been  subjected,  the  treaty  of  Fon- 
tainebleau,  violated  by  the  kings  who  had  torn 
from  him  his  wife  and  son,  the  indignant  cry  of  the 
old  Queen   Marie-Caroline  to  her  granddaughter : 


4 


304  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

"  Since  you  are  prohibited  from  going  out  by  the 
door,  escape  by  the  window  and  fly  to  rejoin  your 
husband,"  the  King  of  Rome — then  called  the  Prince 
Imperial — separated  from  his  mother,  Mme.  de 
Montesquiou  driven  away  and  trembling  for  her 
pupil's  life,  the  Emperor  wished  Meneval  to  recount 
it  all  and  ordered  a  report  to  be  prepared  in  case 
the  Chamber  made  a  motion  for  the  King  of  Rome. 
The  Chamber  ! 

Not  once  during  the  hundred  days,  not  once  during 
the  six  years  of  agony  at  Saint  Helena,  did  a  word 
of  censure  or  bitterness  against  Marie-Louise  escape 
him  ;  he  invariably  spoke  of  her  with  affection  and 
kindly  pity  ;  he  thought  of  her  only  as  she  was  when 
she  first  came  to  France,  young,  fresh,  loyal  and 
unsullied  ;  there  is  not  one  of  his  companions  in 
captivity  who  has  not  reported  his  conversations 
regarding  her  almost  in  the  same  terms.  If  a 
European  ship  dropped  anchor  in  Jamestown  Bay 
Napoleon  was  sure  that  he  was  about  to  receive  a 
letter  from  the  Empress,  and  nervous,  anxious  and 
unable  to  work,  would  pass  the  whole  day  in  expect- 
ancy; when  one  of  his  servants  was  taken  from 
him  his  first  thought  was  to  send  a  letter  by  that 
sure  hand  to  Marie-Louise,  as  for  example  the  one 
he  confided  to  his  surgeon  in  which  he  said  :  ' '  Should 
the  bearer  of  this  see  you,  my  good  Louise,  I  beg 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  305 

of  you  to  permit  him  to  kiss  your  hands."  In  his 
will,  which  was  dated  the  5th  of  April,  1821,  he 
wrote  this  phrase  :  "  I  never  have  had  any  fault  to 
find  with  my  dear  wife,  the  Empress  Marie-Louise  ; 
to  my  last  moment  I  shall  retain  for  her  the  most 
tender  sentiments,  and  I  heg  her  to  watch  over  my 
son  and  guard  against  the  dangers  which  still  sur- 
round his  childhood  ; "  and,  as  if  this  was  not  enough, 
he  bequeathed  to  her  from  the  modest  wardrobe 
which  now  constituted  his  sole  fortune,  all  his  laces, 
and  on  the  28th  of  April,  a  week  before  his  death, 
he  instructed  Antommarchi  to  take  his  heart  from 
his  body  and  send  it  to  her.  ' •  Preserve  my  heart 
in  alcohol,"  he  said  to  the  physician,  "  and  take  it 
yourself  to  Parma  to  my  dear  Marie-Louise  ;  tell  her 
that  I  love  her  tenderly  and  have  never  ceased  to 
love  her,  recount  to  her  all  that  you  have  seen,  all 
that  touches  my  situation  and  my  death." 

Truly  Hudson  Lowe  did  well  in  obliging  Antom- 
marchi to  place  the  silver  vase  which  contained 
Napoleon's  heart  in  his  coffin  :  What  would  Count 
Keipperg  have  done  with  it  ? 

In  default  of  the  perfidious  Austrian,  many  other 

women,  from  France,  Ireland  and  Poland  surrounded 

the  Emperor  during  the  last  glorious  days  of  his 

short  reign  of  three  months,  encouraging  his  spirit 

by  their  enthusiasm  and  devotion,  pleasing  his  eye 
20 


306  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

by  their  beauty  ;  while  even  those  who  were  least 
fitted  for  political  intrigues  became  his  spies  and 
informants,  and  by  instinct  rather  than  reason, 
frequently  gave  counsel  which  might  well  have 
been  followed  ;  for  example,  George  regarding 
Fouche  ;  Mme.  Pellapra  who  hastened  to  return  to 
Paris  from  Lyons  and  warned  him  of  the  Duke 
d'Otrante's  intentions,  and  Mme.  Walewska,  who, 
hastily  returning  from  Naples,  was  immediately 
received  with  her  son  at  the  Elysee,  brought 
messages  from  Murat.  Mme.  *  *  *  *  was  among 
the  first  to  present  herself  to  the  Emperor,  and  as- 
suming her  title  and  rank  as  lady  of  the  palace, 
was  among  the  faithful  ones  of  the  20th  of  March, 
and  among  those  who,  in  the  brilliantly  illuminated 
salon  of  the  Tuileries,  impatiently  awaited  the  ar- 
rival of  the  exile  of  Elba.  There  were  many  others, 
Mme.  Dulauloy,  Mme.  Lavallette,  Mme.  Ney,  Mme. 
Jfcegnauld  de  Saint-Jean-d'Angely,  Mme.  de  Beauvau 
-and  Mme.  de  Turenne,  all  of  whom  vied  with  each 
other  in  the  endeavor  to  encourage  and  please  him. 
.At  that  time  there  breathed  upon  these  women  of 
^France  that  divine  afflatus  which  creates  heroines 
and  martyrs,  inspires  acts  of  supreme  devotion  and 
courage,  and  strengthens  souls  to  face  courageously 
the  severest  trials. 

During  that  sinister  period,  which  is  justly  called, 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  807 

"the  White  Terror,"  a  period  of  atrocities  which 
to-day  we  vainly  seek  to  palliate,  the  women  of  the 
Empire  manifested,  amidst  the  universal  cowardli- 
ness of  mankind,  a  courage,  energy  and  presence 
of  mind  which  immortalizes  them  ;  at  the  Tuileries 
during  the  hundred  days,  at  Malmaison  and  after 
Waterloo,  they  proved  how  well  they  knew  how  to 
show  their  loyalty  and  honor  misfortune. 

It  was  not  alone  the  well  known  and  the  cele- 
brated, but  the  humble  and  the  obscure  who  showed 
their  devotion  ;  as,  for  example,  a  woman,  who,  at 
the  review  of  the  confederation,  approached  the 
Emperor  and  handed  him  a  petition,  a  roll  of  paper 
carefully  fastened,  from  which,  when  it  was  opened, 
there  fell  twenty-five  bank  notes  of  a  thousand 
francs  each  ;  and  another  who,  on  the  23d  of  June, 
the  eve  of  the  day  upon  which  Napoleon  was  to 
leave  the  Elysee  for  Malmaison,  wrote  to  his  valet 
de  chambre,  requesting  him  to  meet  her  at  the 
church  of  Saint- Philippe  du  Eoule  to  receive  an 
important  communication.  Marchand  went  to  the 
rendezvous,  and  found  at  the  place  indicated  a 
woman  engaged  in  prayer ;  she  was  veiled,  but  not 
heavily  enough  to  hide  her  features,  which  were 
exceptionally  beautiful ;  Marchand  approached  and 
asked  in  what  way  he  could  serve  her.  The  mysteri- 
ous lady  hesitated  for  a  moment,  then,  with  extreme 


308  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 

embarrassment,  replied  that  the  misfortunes  of  the 
Emperor  had  touched  her  deeply,  that  she  wished 
to  see,  to  console  and  love  him.  Napoleon,  on  hear- 
ing of  her  desire,  smiled  and  said  :  "  Hers  is  an  ad- 
miration which  might  lead  to  an  intrigue  ;  it  must 
not  be  encouraged,"  but  the  naive  offer  of  this 
heart,  coming  on  such  a  day  and  at  such  an  hour, 
touched  him  profoundly,  and  later,  upon  several 
occasions,  he  spoke  of  the  mysterious  lady  of  Saint- 
Philippe  du  Eoule. 

Did  he  find  in  captivity  some  woman  who  gave  to 
him  the  consolation  which  only  a  tender  woman  can 
give  to  a  man  1  We  know  about  his  childish  romps 
with  Miss  Elizabeth  Balcombe,  during  her  sojourn 
at  Briars  ;  and  we  divine  a  familiarity  with  a 
woman  whose  conduct  during  the  Empire  would 
seemingly  have  forbidden  her  to  approach  him,  and 
who,  twice  divorced,  dismissed  from  court,  had,  by 
the  simple  fact  of  his  marriage,  brought  disgrace 
upon  her  third  husband.  But  if  the  testamentary 
liberality  which  the  Emperor  showed  this  person 
gives  some  weight  to  the  reports  of  the  foreign 
Commissioners,  if  her  presence  really  occasioned 
discord  among  the  Emperor's  companions,  and  her 
departure  was  one  of  the  painful  experiences  which 
he  was  obliged  to  live  through,  one  yet  knows  too 
little  regarding  this  portion  of  the  drama  of  Saint 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  309 

Helena  to  expatiate  upon  it ;  the  woman  plied  her 
role  upon  the  island  ;  that  is  all  that  one  can  say. 

Side  by  side  with  this  retired  courtesan,  whom 
interest  had  taken  to  Kochefort,  and  whom  interest 
retained  at  Saint  Helena,  we  find  another  woman, 
who  is  really  worthy  of  admiration.  By  birth  and 
by  her  relationship  with  the  Fitz-James  family, 
Countess  Bertrand  was  entitled  to  one  of  the  best 
positions  at  Court,  and,  had  she  remained  in  Paris, 
would  doubtless  have  been  one  of  the  leaders  of 
society,  but  she  voluntarily  shared  her  husband's 
devotion  to  his  chief  and  followed  him  into  exile  ; 
she  lived  in  a  cabin  infested  with  rats,  within  reach 
of  the  Emperor,  but  unable  to  succor  or  amuse  him. 
She  remained  until  the  end,  compassionate,  sensible 
and  dignified,  guarding  her  honor  like  a  Koman 
matron,  and  like  a  statue  of  grief  she  followed  the 
procession  which  conducted  the  captive  conqueror 
to  his  grave  in  the  valley  of  Geranium,  and  she,  an 
Englishwoman  by  birth,  was  the  only  woman  who 
wept  over  the  remains  of  him  whom  her  country- 
men had  murdered. 


310  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

SUMMARY. 

The  sum  of  the  preceding  chapters  only  signified 
that  Napoleon  was  subject  to  the  same  desires,  pas- 
sions and  weaknesses  as  other  men,  and  had  taken 
no  vows  of  continence  ;  that  the  amorous  side  of  his 
nature  was  twofold,  on  one  side  the  physical  alone 
reigned,  on  the  other  physical  and  moral  united  .  .  . 
the  moral  being  in  the  ascendant. 

We  have  hidden  none  of  the  adventures  wherein 
the  animal  part  of  his  nature  alone  predominated  ; 
not  because  one  can  glean  from  them  a  special  in- 
sight into  his  character,  but  because  to  hide  them 
would  give  rise  to  the  suspicion  that  they  were 
wholly  unfavorable  to  his  general  character.  Be- 
cause he  was  Napoleon  all  that  he  did  was  known, 
and  no  matter  how  carefully  he  hid  his  amorous 
intrigues  they  were  sure  to  be  discovered ;  ladies-in- 
waiting  and  ladies'-maids,  aides-de-camp  and  valets 
were  ceaselessly  on  the  watch,  and  no  matter  how 
insignificant  the  events  which  transpired  they  were 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND.  311 

all  carefully  noted.  Everybody  at  the  Tuileries 
lived  in  the  governmental  zone,  whether  they  were 
soliciting  favors  or  hunting  for  news,  and  all  took 
a  lively  interest  in  the  doings  of  the  Emperor,  and 
each  made  a  note  of  any  incident  which  came  under 
his  observation.  As  everything,  Napoleon  did,  has 
an  historical  interest,  as  his  lightest  words,  slightest 
actions,  even  the  trifling  ailments  which  from  time 
to  time  afflicted  him,  have  been  of  interest  to  the 
public  for  a  hundred  years,  and  as  many  erroneous 
tales  have  been  accredited,  the  sole  course  for  the 
author  of  this  book  to  pursue  is  to  establish  facts, 
and  relate  such  adventures  as  are  authenticated  by 
the  according  narrations  of  various  reliable  persons  ; 
if  any  have  been  omitted,  or  simply  referred  to,  it  is 
because  they  have  been  related  by  but  one  chronicler 
and  it  has  been  impossible  to  discover  documentary 
proof  of  their  authenticity,  or  sometimes  because 
they  were  of  so  commonplace  a  nature  as  to  render 
it  useless  to  dwell  upon  them. 

There  were  women  always  ready  to  gratify  his 
desires,  whether  expressed  by  himself  or  made 
known  by  his  messengers  ;  he  accepted  their  will- 
ingly-given caresses,  sometimes  from  physical  ne- 
cessity, sometimes  from  voluptuousness  ;  but  he 
never  experienced  mental  exhaustion  or  fatigue 
from  his  adventures,  nor  did  any  woman  distract 


812  NAPOLEON,  LOVER    AND    HUSBAND. 

him  from  his  work  ;  of  all  these  women  none  was 
seduced  by  him,  for  if  there  was  a  virgin  among 
their  number  she  was  one  who  trafficked  on  her 
virtue. 

In  order  to  judge  the  men  of  the  Empire,  above 
all,  Napoleon,  by  the  narrow  and  hypocritical  stand- 
ard of  contemporaneous  times  one  must  place  them 
in  similar  environments  ;  their  lives  were  not  the 
humdrum,  monotonous  lives  of  the  modern  business 
man,  they  were  always  in  the  saddle,  death  on  the 
crupper,  galloping  from  one  end  of  Europe  to  the 
other  amidst  a  rain  of  bullets,  and  if  some  of  them, 
unknown  to  the  Emperor,  trailed  their  mistresses 
after  them,  the  majority  gave  little  thought  to  the 
senses  and  remained  chaste  during  the  campaigns. 

If,  on  their  return  from  a  long  war,  or  when  a 
city  was  conquered  and  there  was  a  lull  in  the  strife, 
brute  passion  gained  the  mastery,  does  it  signify 
that  they  were  the  most  debauched  of  mankind  ? 
To  have  followed  the  calling  which  they  selected 
from  preference  and  clung  to  from  ambition  must 
they  not  have  been,  by  origin  and  nature,  stronger, 
more  brutal,  more  like  the  primitive  man,  than  the 
men  of  this  generation  ?  Did  not  their  profession 
develop,  accentuate  and  foster  all  that  was  savage, 
combative  and  animal  in  their  natures  ?  Had  they 
not  the  same  tastes,  desires  and  appetites  as  other 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  313 

men  ?  Was  it  to  be  expected  that  they  would 
remain  scrupulously  faithful  to  wives  whom  they 
rarely  saw  ? 

Some  few,  indeed,  were  faithful,  and  there  are 
admirable  examples  of  fidelity,  tenderness  and 
delicacy  given  by  those  men  of  war,  but  for  the 
majority  the  distractions  of  the  camp  and  garrison 
intrigues  were  the  rule,  and  they  placed  no  impor- 
tance upon  them. 

Side  by  side  with  these  animal  appetites  they 
entertained  ingenuously  sentimental  ideas  of  con- 
jugal tenderness,  and  nothing  was  too  good  or  too 
precious  for  the  wife  who  had  almost  invariably 
been  married  for  love  and  from  the  most  disinter- 
ested motives  ;  to  satisfy  her  tastes  they  pillaged 
Europe,  throwing  their  spoils  at  her  feet ;  to  content 
her  caprices  and  ambitions  they  deployed  an  amount 
of  patience  and  diplomacy  which  would  make  one 
smile  were  it  not  so  touching. 

In  generosity,  in  the  care  for  his  wife,  in  letters, 
presents,  and  in  the  wealth  showered  upon  her, 
Napoleon  was  not  outdone  by  any  of  his  warriors, 
but  his  sentimentalism  was  of  another  origin  and 
essence  than  theirs. 

The  soldiers  of  the  Empire,  who  had  neither  by 
nature  nor  by  education  any  scruples,  fabricated  a 
code  of  honor  for  themselves,  and  although  they 


314  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

fondly  believed  the  sword  had  made  them  the  equals 
of  the  men  of  gentle  birth  whose  places  they  had 
usurped,  and  whom  they  hated,  their  "  soldier's 
code"  differed  in  many  respects  from  that  attri- 
buted by  Montesquieu  to  gentlemen ;  but  in  their 
days  they  could  hardly  search  for  the  rules  regulat- 
ing that  code  of  honor,  and  they  did  not  care  to  take 
a  Lauzun  or  a  Tilly  for  their  model ;  they  still  de- 
tested those  whom  they  had  replaced,  and  if  they 
laid  claim  to  the  title  of  "  gentlemen"  it  was  be- 
cause they  considered  themselves  the  equals  of 
men  of  noble  ancestry. 

From  1806  everything  in  France  was  modeled  on 
the  troubadour  style,  novels,  historical  works,  pict- 
ures, dress  and  drama,  but  it  was  less  a  question  of 
the  troubadour  himself,  than  of  him  of  whom  he  sang; 
the  knight  who  professed  the  adoration  of  his  lady, 
who  for  his  exploits  in  the  Holy  Land  received  a 
scarf  embroidered  by  her  fair  hands  and  considered 
his  deeds  of  valor  well  rewarded  by  a  glance  from  her 
dear  eyes.  The  warriors  of  the  Empire  made  every 
effort  to  model  themselves  after  these  ideal  cheva- 
liers, and  though  they  did  not  gird  themselves  with 
the  fair  one's  colors,  many  a  man  wore  a  sword-knot 
embroidered  by  her,  or  wore  the  beloved  one's  por- 
trait over  his  heart,  and  decorated  himself  with 
some  bauble  of  her  giving  upon  state  occasions. 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.       315 

Napoleon  yielded  less  to  this  current  than  his  fol- 
lowers, than  Prince  Eugene  and  certain  of  his  mar- 
shals, but  the  ambient  atmosphere  finally  affected 
him  also,  as  certain  incidents  in  his  relations  with 
Marie-Louise  prove  conclusively ;  but  it  was  not, 
however,  until  the  close  of  the  Empire  that  a  senti- 
ment, until  then  unexperienced,  awoke  in  him  and 
effaced  all  others. 

Up  to  that  time  Napoleon's  sentimentalism  was 
in  no  degree  influenced  by  the  literature  of  the  time, 
but  greatly  by  that  of  a  previous  era.  Eousseau  had 
influenced  him,  as  his  letters  to  Josephine,  Mme. 
*  *  *  *  and  Mme.  Walewska  show  ;  in  all  of  them  may 
be  found  the  same  tone,  the  identical  expressions 
and  words  which  were  used  by  the  young  Lieutenant 
Bonaparte  when  from  Valence  he  complained  of  his 
loneliness  and  poverty. 

A  pupil  of  Jean- Jacques,  Napoleon  was  so  thor- 
oughly impregnated  with  the  ideas  of  his  master, 
that  he,  who  had  striven  for  and  obtained,  even 
the  impossible,  in  the  order  of  events,  encountered 
only  impotence,  negation  and  disgust  in  the  range 
of  sentiments.  In  Napoleon's  continual  search  for 
a  woman  who  would  love  him  for  himself,  whose 
only  thought  would  be  for  him,  who  would  live  but 
for  him,  and  with  whom  he  could  dwell  in  a  constant 
interchange  of  tenderness,  he  certainly  acted  in  good 


816  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND   HUSBAND. 

faith  ;  but  who  can  tell  up  to  what  point  he  was  in- 
fluenced by  his  literary  souvenirs,  or  how  much  he 
forced  himself  in  the  effort  to  experience  sensations 
which  he  believed  to  be  rare  and  strange. 

That  which  gives  us  reason  to  think  that  he  forced 
his  nature  is  that  he  soon  wearied  ;  he  received  less 
pleasure  than  he  anticipated  in  the  society  of  the 
woman  he  wooed,  and  the  real  woman  seemed  invari- 
ably inferior  to  the  ideal  creature  of  his  imagination  ; 
the  sentimentalism  which  was  cultivated  found  itself 
in  opposition  to  the  positivism  which  was  natural, 
and  he  ruptured  the  much-sought-f  or  relations  ;  but 
only  to  run  in  search  of  a  new  sensation,  a  fresh 
experience,  as  soon  as  the  occasion  offered. 

In  such  a  man  his  fidelity,  not  of  the  senses,  but 
of  the  heart,  is  surprising  ;  he  had  mistresses  whom 
he  loved  sincerely,  and  he  divorced  Josephine,  yet 
she  held  a  place  apart  in  his  heart  and  he  ever  felt 
a  deep  and  tender  affection  for  her,  an  affection  so 
strong  that  he  pardoned  all  her  faults  and  the 
wrongs  she  had  done  him  ;  nay,  more,  he  forgot 
them. 

Josephine's  life,  of  which  he  did  not  fail  to  keep 
himself  informed,  must  have  revolted  him,  but  he 
shut  his  eyes  to  it,  and  remembered  only  that  the 
woman  whom  he  had  raised  to  be  the  first  lady  in 
France,  who  was  associated  with  his  destiny,  was 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  817 

grace  itself  and  elegance  personified  ;  he  endowed 
her  with  all  the  virtues  and  graces  which  a  passion- 
ate lover  showers  upon  his  mistress,  and,  although 
he  reproached  her  for  her  prodigality,  he  proved  his 
affection  by  giving  her  the  means  to  gratify  all  her 
desires. 

To  the  end  of  his  days  Napoleon  ignored  the  true 
Josephine,  and  threw  over  the  love  of  his  youth  a 
halo  of  imaginary  charms  and  virtues  which  has 
immortalized  her  ;  if  he  thus  deceived  posterity  it 
was  because  he  was  himself  deceived,  and  to  the  very 
end  he  persisted  in  the  illusions,  holding  before  his 
eyes,  in  his  heart  and  senses,  at  Saint  Helena,  the 
Josephine  whom  he  had  seen  for  the  first  time  in 
the  rue  Chantereine,  the  woman  in  whose  arms  he 
first  tasted  the  sweets  of  love. 

Napoleon's  love  for  Josephine  was  such  as  a  man 
gives  to  his  mistress,  a  love  without  respect,  which 
puts  no  restraint  upon  itself,  exacts  instant  satis- 
faction and  does  not  fear  disagreements  ;  which  vol- 
untarily confesses  its  infidelities  and  relates  risqu£e 
anecdotes  ;  that  such  was  Napoleon's  affection  for 
Josephine  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  at  each  evolu- 
tion of  his  destiny  he  realized  more  forcibly  that  his 
interests  demanded  he  should  break  with  her  and 
rupture  the  union  which  was  not  a  marriage  in  his 
eyes  because  it  had  not  for  eight  years  been  sane- 


318  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

tioned  by  the  Church,  and  because,  when  it  did  re- 
ceive the  Church's  blessing,  he  had  appeared  before 
the  priest  by  force.  Had  Josephine  given  him  a 
child  he  would  have  considered  the  contract  valid, 
but,  being  childless,  he  considered  himself  free,  and 
when  he  separated  himself  from  her  he  treated  her 
like  a  mistress,  consoling  her  by  large  sums  of 
money  and  arranging  for  her  existence  in  an  opulent 
style. 

One  may  question  whether,  in  spite  of  the  weak- 
ness Napoleon  had  for  Josephine,  despite  his  shower- 
ing favors  and  presents  upon  her,  adopting  her 
children  and  elevating  her  relatives  to  posts  of  honor, 
Napoleon  ever  regarded  her  as  of  his  family ;  so 
great  was  the  difference  between  the  sentiments  he 
entertained  for  her  and  those  inspired  by  Marie- 
Louise,  particularly  after  Marie-Louise  had  borne 
him  a  child.  Then  the  conjugal  spirit  took  posses- 
sion of  and  dominated  him  ;  undoubtedly  he  never 
gave  her  the  passionate  love  he  had  bestowed  upon 
his  first  wife,  but  he  entertained  for  Marie-Louise  a 
respect  which  he  never  gave  to  Josephine.  While 
he  had  invariably  refused  all  participation  in  affairs 
of  state  to  his  first  wife  he  voluntarily  accorded  it  to 
the  second,  discovering  in  her  greater  intelligence 
than  he  accorded  to  his  oldest  councillors  or  even  to 
his  brothers.     With  Josephine  the  sentimental  side 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND.      319 

of  his  nature  as  developed  by  Eousseau  was  domi- 
nant, while  with  Marie-Louise  his  Corsican  atavism 
and  the  traditions  of  his  native  mountains  resumed 
their  supremacy  :  Marie-Louise  was  sanctified  in  his 
view  by  her  motherhood. 

Napoleon  would  never  admit  that  his  wife  had 
abandoned  him  and  deceived  him  ;  she  was  his  wife, 
the  mother  of  his  son,  and  that  placed  her  above  the 
temptations  and  weakness  common  to  her  sex.  So 
dominant  was  the  conjugal  spirit  in  him  that,  to  the 
hour  of  his  death,  he  ignored  her  treachery,  and  that 
he,  who  was  so  jealous  of  the  woman  he  had  once 
possessed  that  he  complained  bitterly  of  Mme.  Wale  w- 
ska's  marriage,  never  uttered  a  complaint  against 
his  wife.  Was  his  silence  occasioned  by  the  desire 
of  securing  for  her  the  respect  which  a  monarchal 
lord  requires  paid  to  crowned  heads,  did  it  make  him 
happier  to  ignore  her  faults,  did  he  find  excuses  for 
them  in  the  extraordinary  circumstances  surround- 
ing her,  or  did  he  hope  that  the  secret  he  refused  to 
reveal  would  be  better  guarded  by  history  ?  Possibly 
he  was  actuated  by  all  these  motives,  but  his  pre- 
dominant thought  was,  that  she  was  his  wife,  and 
therefore  could  not  fall. 

Thus,  separating  the  purely  sensual  liaisons,  which 
were  brief,  from  the  deep  attachments  of  his  life,  we 
find  in  Napoleon  as  great  a  faculty  for  love  as  for 


320  NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND  HUSBAND. 

thought  and  action,  and  are  obliged  to  admit  that 
he  was  as  astonishing  a  husband  as  he  was  a  war- 
rior and  a  statesman. 

There  remains  but  one  point  to  be  considered, 
whether  any  of  the  women  with  whom  Napoleon  was 
closely  related  ever  swayed  him  sufficiently  to  affect 
his  political  views  and  moves ;  it  does  not  appear 
that  any  woman,  either  wife  or  mistress,  directly  in- 
fluenced him,  but  doubtless  the  impressions  received 
from  both,  the  ideas  they  advanced  and  the  circum- 
stances accompanying  certain  of  his  liaisons  gave 
rise  to  new  ideas  in  his  brain  and  modified  old  ones. 

Dearly  loved  as  Josephine  was,  she  was  not  among 
those  who  were  the  primary  cause  of  certain  politi- 
cal moves.  It  has  been  affirmed  that  it  was  her  in- 
fluence which  surrounded  him  with  people  of  noble 
birth  and  led  him,  at  times,  to  sacrifice  the  spirit  of 
the  revolution  to  the  traditions  of  the  old  regime, 
but  that  is  an  error  ;  Josephine  sought  to  draw  the 
old  nobility  round  Napoleon  by  his  order,  and  it  was 
at  his  command  that  she  protected  then)..  An  in- 
sight into  the  various  gradations  of  society  under  the 
old  regime,  some  false  impressions,  some  informa- 
tion, much  of  which  was  inexact,  was  about  all  he 
gleaned  from  her.  The  birth  of  a  son  to  Mile.  Denu- 
elle  de  la  Plaegne  doubtless  first  determined  him  to 
divorce  Josephine,  and  that  of  Mme.  Walewska's 


NAPOLEON,  LOVER  AND   HUSBAND.  821 

cemented  his  resolution,  while  his  political  attitude 
towards  Poland  is  explained  if  one  remembers  who 
was  his  mistress  and  close  companion  from  1807  to 
1809,  even  his  long  friendship  for  Bernadotte  be- 
comes comprehensible  when  one  recalls  his  tender- 
ness for  Desiree. 

When  Napoleon  married  Marie-Louise  and  became, 
through  her,  a  member  of  the  house  of  Austria,  he 
believed  the  relationship  so  formed  was  close  and 
binding,  as  the  tie  which  bound  him  to  his  own 
family,  and  his  faith  in  the  Austrian  Emperor's 
friendship,  his  confidence  in  his  wife's  fidelity  and 
discretion  is  due  to  his  belief  in  the  strength  and  in- 
destructibility of  ties  of  blood  and  his  conviction 
that  they  alone  rendered  a  political  alliance  invio- 
late. Marie-Louise,  not  because  she  was  unusually 
intelligent,  but  because  of  the  role  she  played  in  his 
political  combinations  and  the  prestige  of  her  mother- 
hood, exercised  an  unprecedented  influence  over  him. 
Napoleon  set  a  high  value  upon  ties  of  blood  and  the 
obligations  entailed  by  kinship  ;  he  was  a  true  Cor- 
sican  in  the  strength  of  his  attachment  and  his  ad- 
herence to  family,  and  it  appears  as  if  the  very  value 
he  placed  upon  the  ties  which  should  be  the  strongest 
and  most  sacred  to  humanity  caused  his  fall. 
\       If  women  had  played  no  role  in  his  life,  Napoleon  f^ 

would  cease  to  be  the  amazing  example  of  mascu- 
10 


322  NAPOLEON,  LOVER   AND  HUSBAND. 

line  genius  that  he  is,  and  would  become  a  sexiest 
being  without  interest  to  humanity  because  not  sub- 
ject to  the  failings  and  passions  of  other  men,  unin- 
fluenced by  the  traditions  which  sway  them,  pos- 
sessed of  no  sentiment  common  to  mankind.  As  it 
was,  this  man,  whose  genius  was  astounding,  who, 
served  by  an  unparalleled  fortune,  accomplished  the 
greatest  task  that  mortal  ever  undertook,  was  pre- 
cisely the  man  to  whom  no  emotion  was  a  stranger. 
It  is  human  to  be  influenced  by,  to  believe  in  and 
to  love  woman,  to  experience  by  her  and  for  her  all 
the  sensations  and  emotions  which  she  inspires,  and 
in  that  respect,  as  in  all  others,  Napoleon  was  superior 
to  mankind. 

THE  END. 


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